Respiratory virus surveillance in Australia: past, present and future
Allen C. Cheng A B C *A
B
C
Allen Cheng is an infectious diseases physician, epidemiologist and biostatistician. He is an investigator for the FluCAN surveillance system, and is a member of the National Influenza Surveillance Committee, as well as several other technical advisory committees. |
Abstract
Surveillance for respiratory viruses has developed from being solely focused on influenza notification to a more sophisticated system that allows for a more comprehensive picture of the burden, severity and impact of several respiratory viruses. Although all surveillance is associated with some degree of bias, when combined these provide useful information on the respiratory virus activity. However, further improvements are possible using new sources of surveillance, such as linked administrative databases, and taking a broader view of surveillance that provides information for forecasting and on public health control measures.
Keywords: communicable diseases control, COVID-19, epidemiology, immunisation programs, Influenza, public health surveillance, respiratory viruses.
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