Training on effective disease outbreak response ends on a high note

Islamabad

A three-day training on better detection of and effective response to future disease outbreaks (including influenza) concluded here Friday, with 37 senior medical doctors from the armed forces (including Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Air Force and other allied organisations) benefiting from the initiative. 

The course was designed to promote understanding about the dynamics of public health surveillance, common sources, purposes and use of surveillance data, investigation of outbreaks, implementation of control measures, development of an intervention strategy for an outbreak, and summarisation and analysis of data.

Teaching materials for the course prepared by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), USA, and delivered by internationally trained faculty of the Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Programme (FELTP). The course was arranged through joint partnership with the Armed Forces Post Graduate Medical Institute (AFPGMI), FELTP, and Division of Field Epidemiology and Surveillance, National Institute of Health (NIH).

Dr. Rana Jawad Asghar, resident adviser of FELTP, informed the audience about similar programmes operational in 60 countries. “In 2006, Pakistan became the 32nd such country to start FELTP. Till now, 87 medical doctors/veterinarians, who were nominated by their respective federal/provincial departments of health, have completed two years of intensive training in field epidemiology while 46 are currently under training. A federal and 4 provincial disease surveillance and response units have been established at the Director General Health offices, staffed by current FELTP fellows assisting provinces in improving surveillance and outbreak response. Since 2011, 63 fellows trained by FELTP are assisting in critical polio work as NSTOP (National Stop Transmission of Polio) officers. In the next few months, FELTP will launch a 3-month Basic programme to address the needs of frontline workers,” Dr. Rana shared.

Major General Zahid Hamid, Commandant AFPGMI, reiterated that Pakistan Army will support expansion of field epidemiology discipline to ensure better capacity for swift detection of outbreaks (naturally or man-made), and to minimize their consequences. “This is the second year that serving officers of the Pakistan Army are now part of FELTP’s two-year fellowship programme,” he stated.

NIH Executive Director Dr. Farnaz Malik, who is also working as director of FELTP, informed the audience about the role of NIH in strengthening disease surveillance and laboratory capacity in the country. “NIH has been successful in competing for and getting international grants to strengthen the public health infrastructure with the collaboration of the provinces. We are now leading work in International Health Regulations (IHR) and antimicrobial resistance. With a newly established division of field epidemiology and surveillance, NIH will also move towards sustainable and integrated disease surveillance. Setting up of Disease Surveillance and Response Units in provinces is the first step in this regard, and this year they will be expanded to more major cities,” she informed.

In the end, Dr. Farnaz and Major General Zahid Hamid distributed completion certificates among the participants.