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February 4, 2008; excerpt
Public Health Surveillance Networks: Learning, Trust, Diplomacy, Science and Technology
Our three vital concerns with regard to infectious disease surveillance are:
- Governance arrangements for networks. We concluded that a flexible approach to governance arrangements is needed that is appropriate to local political, economic and social conditions. While lessons could be learned from each other no single model will suit all regions. We also concluded that experience showed that investment of time in building trust between collaborating partners is an essential ingredient for success;
- Efficient electronic knowledge management and sharing. We agreed that the most appropriate information and communications technology (ICT) should be developed and employed to facilitate timely and accurate sharing of surveillance information and best practices. This will allow for timely alert and collective responses to control outbreaks. Public-private partnerships should be promoted to advance and ensure the best use of ICT systems; and
- Capacity Building. We concluded that capacity especially human and laboratory capabilities are seriously inadequate in many developing countries. We considered that advances are required urgently, not only to enhance badly needed national capacities, but also to facilitate substantive cross-border cooperation between and among countries.
Regional Networks Needed for Pandemic Plan
February 1, 2008; UPI; summary
WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 (UPI) -- A coalition of experts from disease surveillance and prevention agencies all over the world wants more support for regional pandemic preparedness networks.
The so-called Bellagio declaration, issued Thursday in Bangkok, is signed by 23 practitioners who met in December at the Rockefeller Conference Centre in Bellagio, Italy.
The group says that future efforts should base themselves on existing regional networks, which should be connected "to facilitate sharing of experiences and best practices and training and to promote the implementation of the International Health Regulations."
In areas where no regional network currently exists, the group calls on international agencies to help set them up, adopting "a flexible approach to governance arrangements … that is appropriate to local political, economic and social conditions."
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