Digital epidemiology is the use of technological methods from data collection to information analysis . Ethical discussion depends on how big data is handled and used. Ethical issues are raised by big information analysis, as public health begin monitoring their data externally for different purposes rather than the once collected is entail. The paper outlines the ethical considerations of using big data in public health surveillance.
For transparency, the public health sector should know how people use their data, and if sold, the financial report must be clear. The data's buyer must use it in the right way that can not harm the occupant's security and privacy. The healthcare leaders should have the ability to manage the flow of their private information under a third party data analyzer. The health sector must define and monitor data flow from one person to another. Besides, the collected and analyzed data should remain private as it might go through audits based on the legal requirement. Also, the public health sector should treat personal data with privacy by not disclosing them to other people. Additionally, while using digital epidemiology, healthcare leaders should cover the households they collect information from third parties. It means, they should ensure the data confidential by not sharing sensitive information like medical standards, financial reports, state of the source, and clients' location. Therefore, the healthcare sector should restrict sharing, use, and the flow of patients' information.
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In conclusion, public-healthcare sector's big data ethics are essential because of three main reasons, which include privacy, transparency, and confidentiality. Big data analytics can access and use or sell patients' data. The public health sector should protect people's information by making them private and confidential. Therefore, although digital epidemiology is prevalent in the current healthcare systems around the world, it must observe the ethics in the discussion.
References
In Mathews, B., & In Bross, D. C. (2015). Mandatory reporting laws and the identification of severe child abuse and neglect .