*Note: I’ve been using Google+ for a few weeks now, mostly as an intermediary between sharing a link on Twitter and writing a blog post. For the time being, I’m going to repost the content that generated a lot of interest. -BJM

GOOD has an interesting infographic on deadly disease outbreaks throughout history. Though measles and smallpox are the most prolific microscopic assassins, claiming over 500 million lives, these diseases have been around forever — measles since the 7th century BC, smallpox since 10,000 BC.

What’s more surprising to me is that the Spanish Flu killed up to 100 million people in just over a year’s time as the 1918 flu epidemic spread.

Read the post on GOOD here.

If the idea of triaging patients at the emergency room seems complicated, consider how public health officials prioritize threats posed by organisms they can’t even see. Yet the microscopic microbes and viruses that sicken millions of people with infectious diseases still require a plan of attack. As in any medical scenario, resources are limited. And whether it’s due to low staff numbers, not enough research dollars, or too few hours in the day, someone ultimately has to make the call on where to funnel assets.

In 1994, the World Health Organization started measuring the cumulative healthy years lost to disease with Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALY). And each infectious disease is currently ranked according to its DALY score, providing a numbered system to help guide the public health community in crafting a suitable approach to managing the myriad of diseases they face.

Read more…