The Department started its activities in 1998 and was represented by the Department of Statistics and Sanitary Education (Heads: Prof. B.O. Chorny, B.Ya. Shur). As an independent organizational and methodological Department it was created in 1944. It was headed by B.Ya.Shur (1944-1946), M.M. Suponitsky, сand.med.sci. (1946-1974), Prof. O. M. Dudko (1974-1976), I. M. Faktorov, cand.med.sci. (1976-1983). In 1984, the Department was reorganized in the Department of epidemiological studies, headed by I. I. Faktorov (1984-1996), L.A.Gvozsdenko, Dr. med. sci. (1996-2002), Prof. A.M. Nagorna, Dr.med.sci. (2002 – till present time).
The Department of epidemiological studies includes the Department of Scientific Medical Information, Department of International Relations, Laboratory of Occupational Health Monitoring, and Scientific Library.
The main areas of scientific research of the Department are: studying the level, regularities and causes of development and prevalence of occupational and work-related morbidity of workers in various industries; definition of the risk of developing diseases due to the effect of factors of work conditions and the environment, development of prophylactic measures on preventing the occurrence of occupational diseases, aimed at improvement of working conditions and workers’ state of health. Research is conducted on hygienic monitoring of the health of the working population, medical and social economic losses from occupational diseases, as well as on prevention of tuberculosis and HIV / AIDS at workplace of healthcare workers.
For many years, the Department has been studying the occupational morbidity in Ukraine in the dynamics of observation and comparison with the world trends. Studies were carried out on the morbidity and working conditions of workers in various fields of production, including those in regions that were contaminated with radionuclides as a result of the Chernobyl accident. The study of radiation cataract in the population and liquidators in comparison with the radiation burden on the body takes an important place. The results of the joint Ukrainian-American project on the study of epidemiology of radiation cataract were the basis for adoption of a new standard on radiation exposure and adoption of the IAEA's Basic Safety Standard for States Parties in 2012.
Based on the in-depth study of occupational morbidity in Ukraine for the period of 2001-2012, a methodology for calculating medical, social and economic costs of the society, the Social Insurance Fund from Accidents at Work and Occupational Diseases, the Pension Fund and enterprises, using the international integral indicator of the lost years of healthy life – DALYs, caused by occupational pathology has been developed. The existing methodological developments have been adapted to the solution of specific tasks in accordance with actual socio-economic conditions.
The specialists of the Department have developed the organizational support, structure and principles of the functioning of the State Register of Ukraine for persons with an occupational disease (poisoning). A package of documents on its creation and usage has been prepared and submit to the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
The Department co-ordinates the work on training occupational physicians and other specialists, engaged in research and hygienic assessment of factors of the work environment. The Department members implement in practice the results of scientific developments, take part in the preparation of the state-level documents, sanitary norms and rules, standards, guidelines and recommendations. With the participation of the Department's staff, more than 30 methodological recommendations and informational letters were prepared and published.
The Department's staff promotes hygienic and medical knowledge among the population, promotes the coordination of scientific research conducted in other institutions of the occupational direction on the problem "Occupational health and occupational diseases". The editorial board of the "Ukrainian Journal of Occupational Health" (ISSN 2223-6757) works on the basis of the Department.