Infectious disease surveillance in North Rhine-Westphalia: First steps in the development of an early warning system

It is often difficult to detect warning signals on infectious disease outbreaks from raw surveillance data. Data need to be used for a timely generation and distribution of information on the current state of infectious diseases. This offers the opportunity to detect outbreaks and to initiate preven...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of hygiene and environmental health 2001-03, Vol.203 (3), p.195-199
Main Authors: Reintjes, Ralf, Baumeister, Horst-Gerhard, Coulombier, D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
barometer
Biological and medical sciences
Communicable Diseases, Emerging - epidemiology
Disease Outbreaks - prevention & control
early warning system
Epidemiology. Vaccinations
General aspects
Germany - epidemiology
Humans
infectious disease surveillance
Infectious diseases
Medical sciences
outbreak detection
Planification. Prevention (methods). Intervention. Evaluation
Population Surveillance - methods
Program Development
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
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Summary:It is often difficult to detect warning signals on infectious disease outbreaks from raw surveillance data. Data need to be used for a timely generation and distribution of information on the current state of infectious diseases. This offers the opportunity to detect outbreaks and to initiate preventive measures. To improve the surveillance system in North Rhine-Westphalia we have introduced an infectious disease barometer, a simple tool based on weekly notification data. The aim of this tool is not to provide in depth data analysis, but to help to detect clusters or outbreaks. This can be the first step in the development of an early warning system and can support epidemiological investigation and policy making.
ISSN:1438-4639
1618-131X
DOI:10.1078/S1438-4639(04)70028-0