This book focuses on the key concepts and methods of “population health”, which is the study of the health status and health determinants of populations, and the policy development, research agenda, and resource allocation which flow from it. It discusses ways and means of describing the health of populations and estimating their disease burden, assessing and quantifying health risks, designing research studies, and evaluating interventions. It is multidisciplinary in scope—while firmly based on epidemiology and quantitative science, it introduces and integrates concepts from the social scienc ... More

This book focuses on the key concepts and methods of “population health”, which is the study of the health status and health determinants of populations, and the policy development, research agenda, and resource allocation which flow from it. It discusses ways and means of describing the health of populations and estimating their disease burden, assessing and quantifying health risks, designing research studies, and evaluating interventions. It is multidisciplinary in scope—while firmly based on epidemiology and quantitative science, it introduces and integrates concepts from the social sciences and humanities. It uses boxes, case studies, and exercises that provide additional information from the whole spectrum of public health issues and problems, with examples drawn from around the world.