Last Updated: 15/10/2025
Spatial Statistics for use in Epidemiology
Objectives
The objectives of this research are to:
- use statistical techniques to model the location of malaria in humans and in mosquitoes in order to maximize the effect of efforts to prevent and treat the disease. Human cases will be modelled to determine where aid, medicine and prevention methods can have the strongest effect; and
- determine the locations of mosquitoes that harbour and spread the virus to focus extermination efforts.
In both these cases, spatial modeling will be used to improve the effect of treatment and prevention of malaria.
According to a 2014 report by the World Health Organization, malaria infected an estimated 198 million people and killed 584 000 people in 2013; 453 000 (nearly 80%) of these deaths were in children under the age of 5. Worse still, the burden lies disproportionately on developing countries. By discovering where human cases and infected vectors tend to be, we can gleam a variety of practical information: where the disease is, where it is likely to occur in the future, where health resources should be allocated, where we can exterminate vectors, and whether external aid is needed. By using this information, we can maximize the effectiveness of our limited resources and further reduce the global burden of illness, and in turn removing barriers to the progress of the developing world.
Sep 2016 — Aug 2017
$13,383
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