A short applied training course on early detection of and response to disease outbreaks for rapid response teams at provincial and district levels has been designed through a collaboration between the Surveillance Sub-directorate of the Ministry of Health, FETP Secretariat, BBPK Makassar, BBLK Makassar, University of Hasanudin, the South Sulawesi Provincial Health Office and SAFETYNET.The course covers early warning surveillance, epidemiology of epidemic prone diseases, outbreak investigation and control, risk assessment, and communication. This two-month course consists of three workshops with supervised field work between the workshops. For these field assignments, participants are required to analyze surveillance data from their respective coverage areas and conduct an outbreak investigation or evaluation of the quality of surveillance in their area.
Following an orientation of local Indonesian trainers, the first workshop which focused on early warning surveillance was held at BBPK Makassar on 6-10 August 2018 with 20 participants. Participants come from the South Sulawesi Provincial Health Office and the district health offices in Bone, Gowa, Luwu, Palopo, Toraja Utara, and Sidrap. Three rapid response team members (surveillance officer, medical officer, laboratorian) from each of the six districts are attending the training.
Participants will return for a second workshop on 27-31 August and a final workshop on 18-19 September. They are expected to present the results of their fieldwork during these workshops.
This course aims to equip local health staff with the necessary knowledge and skills for effective surveillance and response for disease outbreaks. After completion and evaluation of this pilot course, the Indonesia Ministry of Health plans to roll out the training to other regions in the country.