Epidemiology is the science that studies the patterns, causes and effects of health and disease conditions in defined populations. The recognized goal of epidemiology is to limit disease, injury and death in a community by intervening to prevent or limit outbreaks or epidemics of disease or injury. Two of the most famous legal cases involving epidemiology can be found in the movies “A Civil Action” and “Erin Brockovich.”
“A Civil Action” chronicles a negligence lawsuit filed by attorney Jan Schlichtmann on behalf of eight Woburn, Mass., families against Beatrice Foods and W.R. Grace. The corporations were accused of dumping chemicals (especially trichloroethylene, a probable human carcinogen) in ways that allowed the compounds to reach Woburn’s water supply, thereby increasing the odds that the residents would develop cancer.
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