Surveillance System Evaluations Provide Evidence to Improve Public Health Practice

Abstract

Surveillance evaluations of surveillance systems should provide evidence to improve public health practice. In response to surveillance evaluation findings amongst Pacific Island Countries and Territories that identified a critical need to better equip local public health officials with skills to rapidly appropriately respond to suspected infectious disease outbreaks across the Pacific, the RAPID (Response and Analysis for Pacific Infectious Diseases) project was implemented to strengthen capacity in surveillance, epidemiology and outbreak response. The RAPID project is a notable example of how evidence gathered through a surveillance evaluation can be used to improve public health surveillance practice.