EpiCasa12 – Introduction to epidemiology: mathematical and statistical models and methods

This research school aims at providing the basic notions in epidemiology and modelling to students, or researchers, in mathematics and statistics, so that they can apply their knowledge to solve practical problems, that is:

• to understand scientific papers describing experiments or data acquisition in epidemiology, or dealing with mathematics applied to epidemiology;
• to perform classical data analyses;
• to model a simple epidemiological problem;
• to participate in research projects in epidemiology together with biologists.

This school covers classical epidemiology, including risk factor analyses, survival models, case-control studies; deterministic and stochastic dynamic modelling of disease spread, from SI models to individual-based models; empirical statistical models; spatial dispersal models. It provides methodological courses and varied illustrations in human, animal and plant epidemiology. Hence, without pretending to be exhaustive, it offers a relatively comprehensive panorama of the classical epidemiological concepts, as well as of the mathematical and statistical methods and models used in epidemiology.

This school intends to bring something extra to the future young scientists. In a more general and longer-term perspective, by enlarging the community of competent scientists in epidemiology and in the modelling of infectious problems, it should contribute to the consolidation of this field in French-speaking Africa. Two editions of this school were previously organised:

• EpiCasa07, November 19-30, 2007, Casablanca, Morocco https://colloque2.inra.fr/epicasa07
• EpiCasa09, April 5-16, 2010, Casablanca, Morocco https://colloque.inra.fr/epicasa09