Replacing ill workers with healthy ones accelerates some epidemics
Monday, August 1, 2016 - 22:01
in Health & Medicine
When disease outbreaks occur, people with essential roles -- healthcare workers, first responders, and teachers, for example -- are typically up close and personal with infected people. As these front-line workers become infected, healthy individuals take their places. Based on network models of this 'human exchange,' researchers find that replacing sick individuals with healthy ones can actually accelerate the spread of infection.