While prevention is the catch-all phrase which describes most of any epidemiologist’s agenda, there are some key methods of prevention, such as immunization plans, which are especially important in the military.

The military provides a good opportunity to educate young people about disease prevention and to encourage them to adopt proper health habits. For example, some soldiers start smoking while in the military. The trick here is to get the commanders involved in the preventive effort, as soldiers of all ranks tend to follow the examples set by commanding officers.

Special consideration must be given to prevention of disease among deployed troops, and many militaries have some form of consultation service for this purpose (see slide 19 - “Travel Medicine”).