Public Health Cheat Sheet

The core ideas of Public Health distilled into a single, scannable reference — perfect for review or quick lookup.

PiqCue — piqcue.com/public-health/cheatsheet

Quick Reference

Epidemiology

The study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states and events in populations, and the application of this study to the control of diseases and other health problems. Epidemiologists investigate who gets sick, where disease occurs, when it emerges, and why certain populations are affected.

Social Determinants of Health

The conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health outcomes and risks. These non-medical factors account for an estimated 30 to 55 percent of health outcomes.

Health Disparities

Preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations. Health disparities are closely linked to social, economic, and environmental disadvantage and are a primary focus of health equity research.

Disease Prevention

Measures taken to prevent diseases from occurring rather than curing them or treating their symptoms. Prevention operates at three levels: primary prevention stops disease before it starts, secondary prevention detects disease early, and tertiary prevention manages disease to slow progression and reduce complications.

Health Promotion

The process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health. Health promotion moves beyond a focus on individual behavior toward a wide range of social and environmental interventions that address the root causes of poor health.

Vaccination

The administration of a vaccine to stimulate an individual's immune system to develop adaptive immunity to a pathogen. Vaccination is one of the most cost-effective public health interventions, preventing an estimated two to three million deaths per year worldwide.

Quarantine

The separation and restriction of movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become sick. Quarantine differs from isolation, which separates people who are already confirmed to be infected from those who are not sick.

Health Policy

Decisions, plans, and actions undertaken to achieve specific healthcare goals within a society. Health policy defines a vision for the future, establishes targets, outlines priorities, and sets the roles of different groups in achieving health objectives.

Environmental Health

The branch of public health that focuses on the relationships between people and their environment, promoting human health and well-being while fostering safe and healthful communities. It addresses physical, chemical, and biological factors external to a person that can potentially affect health.

Biostatistics in Public Health

The application of statistical principles and methods to biological, medical, and public health problems. Biostatistics provides the quantitative foundation for designing studies, analyzing health data, drawing inferences about disease causation, and evaluating the effectiveness of public health programs.

Key Terms at a Glance

Attack Rate:The proportion of an at-risk population that develops a disease during a specified time period, often used in outbreak investigations.

Biostatistics:The application of statistical methods to biological, medical, and public health data for the purpose of drawing inferences and making decisions.

Case Fatality Rate:The proportion of individuals diagnosed with a specific disease who die from that disease within a specified time period.

Confounding:A distortion of the estimated effect of an exposure on an outcome caused by the presence of a third variable associated with both the exposure and the outcome.

Contact Tracing:The identification and follow-up of persons who may have been exposed to an infected individual to prevent further transmission of disease.

DALY:Disability-Adjusted Life Year; a measure of overall disease burden expressed as the number of years lost due to ill health, disability, or early death.

Endemic:The constant presence or usual prevalence of a disease or infectious agent within a given geographic area or population group.

Epidemic:The occurrence of cases of a disease in a community or region clearly in excess of normal expectancy.

Epidemiologic Triad:A traditional model of infectious disease causation involving the interaction of agent, host, and environment.

Health Disparity:A particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, or environmental disadvantage.

Health Equity:The attainment of the highest level of health for all people, requiring the removal of obstacles such as poverty, discrimination, and lack of access to care.

Health Literacy:The capacity of individuals to obtain, process, and understand basic health information needed to make appropriate health decisions.

Herd Immunity:The resistance to the spread of an infectious disease in a population when a sufficiently high proportion of individuals are immune.

Incidence:The number of new cases of a disease occurring in a specified population during a defined time interval.

Morbidity:The state of being diseased or unhealthy within a population; often measured as morbidity rate.

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