A conceptual framework for an individual-based spatially explicit epidemiological model

This paper presents a conceptual framework to formalize an individual-based and spatially explicit model of the epidemiology of infectious diseases. The framework differs from that of the traditional population-based epidemiological models in terms of assumptions, conceptual models, and model structures. In particular, the author discusses four aspects of the model: (1) population segments or unique individuals as the modeling unit, (2) continuous process or discrete events to represent the disease development through time, (3) traveling wave or network dispersion to represent the disease transmission in space, and (4) within-group and between-group interactions to represent local and long-distance transmissions. Based on these conceptual discussions, a simple influenza epidemic is simulated in order to illustrate the application of the proposed framework.