Global Health Surveillance: Innovation and Coordination for Broad Health Impact

Abstract

ObjectiveThe session will discuss strategies for outbreak prevention,detection, and response for global health security and explore howthese activities inform both domestic and international initiatives.Innovations in epidemiology, laboratory, informatics, investment, andcoordination for disease surveillance will be discussed.IntroductionMultiple agencies are involved in global disease surveillance andcoordination of activities is essential to achieve broad public healthimpact. Multiple examples of effective and collaborative initiativesexist. The WHO/AFRO developed Integrated Disease Surveillanceand Response (IDSR) framework, adopted by 43 of the 46 AFROmember states and applied in other WHO regions, was the firstframework designed to strengthen national disease surveillance andresponse systems. The WHO International Health Regulations (IHR)2005 are an agreement between 196 countries to prevent, detectand respond to the international spread of disease. In 2013 CDCworked with Uganda and Vietnam to demonstrate the developmentof surveillance, laboratory, and emergency response center capacityand link data systems for six outbreak prone diseases. More recently,the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) was launched with thesupport of 28 countries, WHO, OIE and FAO just as Ebola wasbeginning to emerge in West Africa. This panel brings togetherCDC, local implementing partners, academic technical partners, andinternational non-government donor to discuss current and evolvingstrategies for prevention, detection, and response activities needed forglobal health security.