Applied Epidemiology at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance

Abstract

In February 2023, I began the Master of Philosophy in Applied Epidemiology (MAE) at the Australian National University - Australia's Field Epidemiology Training Program. My placement for the program was at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, New South Wales. During the program I undertook a range of projects and activities related to field epidemiology and public health more broadly. This thesis describes the projects and activities. The first chapter provides an overview of my field placement and describes how I met the requirements of the MAE program. The second chapter contains two outbreak investigations in Sydney, New South Wales: an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis at a swim school; and a gastroenteritis outbreak at a wake. The third chapter is a data analysis of the impact coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related non-pharmaceutical interventions had on pertussis hospitalisations in Australia. The fourth chapter details an epidemiological study I designed and conducted on the epidemiology of vaccine-like and wild-type rotavirus in Australian infants younger than 12 months of age. The fifth chapter is a two-part project involving the analysis of the complete response dataset of the day 42 component of AusVaxSafety's surveillance of adverse events following immunisation for COVID-19 vaccines, and an evaluation of the surveillance system itself. The sixth chapter recounts my experiences teaching field epidemiology, namely the Lessons from the Field activity and teaching the proceeding MAE cohort. The final chapter in this thesis lists other public health activities and experiences I had during the program. The work presented in this thesis meets the major and minor competencies required for completion of the MAE program. It also demonstrates I have the skills and knowledge required to practise field epidemiology. Show more