Occupational Health

understanding and preventing health problems related to work and environments

Hazard

something with the potential to cause harm to human health

Exposure

Exposure route- how a hazard enters or connects to the body (inhalation, ingestion, or dermal contact)

Acute Health Effect- a health effect occurring soon after exposure (almost instant)

Chronic Health Effect- A health effect developing or persisting over a longer period

Hierarchy of Control- A framework for selecting ways to prevent or reduce exposure

Administrative Control- Changing how or when people work

Engineering Control- Isolating people from a hazard

Public Health- protecting and improving the health of populations through prevention and organized action

Disease- a condition that disrupts normal functioning and produces adverse health effects

Epidemic- Disease occurrence in a population above what is normally expected

Isolation- Separating people who are ill to those who are not

Quarantine- restricting the movement of people who may have been exposed to a disease

Imported Case or Outbreak-A case or outbreak introduced into another geographic location

Transportation Network- A connected system in which people, animals, and goods move between places

One Health- An approach to recognizing that the health of humans, animals, and the environment are interconnected

Agriculture Revolution- When people converted from being nomads to being in close, confined spaces with animals

Germ Theory- The scientific concept that microorganisms can cause disease

Pathogen- A biological agent capable of causing disease

Pathogenicity-the ability of a microorganism to cause disease

Virulence- the degree of pathogenicity or capacity of a pathogen to cause disease

Virulence Factor- a structure or characteristic that increases a microorganism's ability to infect a host, overcome host defenses, or cause damage

Infectious Dose- The amount of an infectious agent needed to establish an infection

Agent- a microorganism or other infectious material that causes disease

Reservoir- an organism or environment in which an infectious agent normally lives and is maintained

Vector- an organism that can carry infectious agents from one host to another

Susceptible Host- a person or animal that can become infected by an infectious agent

Transmission Route- the way an infectious agent moves from its source or reservoir to a susceptible host

Vector-borne Transmission- transmission of an infectious agent though a living vector

Yerinsia Pestis- The bacterium that caused the black plague