Southern New Hampshire University IHP-330-H7856 Principles of Epidemiology 23EW5 5-3 Final Project Milestone Two: Population Amanda Hein Jun 3rd, 2023 There was a study done between the years 1988-1997. Residents of Tobago and Trinidad were tested for several types of Salmonella infections. They were also screened for Enteritis and Typhimurium. Samples consisted of children and elderly people. The public was concerned that they were contracting the illness and that the tourists were too. The number of cases was climbing fast, and time was running out to learn who, what, when were, and why the infection was spreading so fast. The three social and behavioral determinants I would consider strongly associated would be population. The human population is preparing the food and that is a cause of contamination. The second would be the geographical location. There were ten farms in the study that provided both cities in the study with the eggs the population was consuming. The farms did not provide any inspection or surveillance procedures for egg production to ensure proper handling of the eggs being supplied. The last determinant is education in the preparation and handling of products. If these had been handled properly, an infection could have been prevented drastically. Disparities would be the farmers' failure to take precautions and provide safety measures to ensure livestock and foul were healthy and disease free. If you look at the selling of eggs, including the lack of safety measures in handling, it was a twice missed precaution. Another
disparity to look at is the lack of reporting of symptoms of the disease in a timely manner. This case study noted that it took 56 days (about 2 months) to reach the agency involved. During this time, there were more cases that could have been reported and prevented if proper communication had been put in place. So, with the lack of sanitary farming, leading to unsafe handling and the lack of communication of possible cases to the proper agencies, more people fell ill due to exposure, and it became an illness out of control. If these issues were addressed or mandated earlier, the possibility of an epidemic would have been reduced. There are few differences in psychological and demographic causes in social environment. To minimize death tolls, infection control and medical programs need to be put in place to help people who are already ill and public education of food preparation should be added to ensure people are properly handling and preparing food to prevent illness. Safety and inspections should be added for farms too, to ensure they maintain sanitary conditions to sell products to the public. What I learned during my research and analysis about contracting salmonella and the handling of it is that it is found throughout most animals, but if the preparation and handling of these animals are not monitored, contagion is a higher risk. Education in properly handling procedures and self-hygiene can also prevent infection. If farms had mandated sanitation implemented, these and other educations should have