Laboratory and Surveillance – a key Area of Work under the PIP Framework Partnership Contribution (PC) Implementation Plan 2013-2016
Through 2016, the majority of PIP Framework funds for preparedness will be used to strengthen laboratory and surveillance capacities in countries where such capacities are weak. This enables WHO/Europe to enhance its existing support to Member States in this area of work.
Expected impact
The Laboratory and Surveillance activities will lead to improved:
- national capacities to detect, assess and respond to an influenza pandemic or outbreaks of severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) due to a novel virus;
- national capacities to monitor trends in circulating influenza viruses;
- global collaboration, through the sharing of information and viruses (epidemiological data from sentinel surveillance and PCR detection quality assurance).
Support for eligible Member States in the European Region
Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan will receive support in the area of Laboratory and Surveillance support through 2016.
WHO/Europe is working with these Member States to:
- increase the capacity of laboratories to detect influenza viruses and to share influenza viruses with WHO Collaborating Centres for Reference and Research on Influenza;
- achieve WHO recognition of National Influenza Centres in Armenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan;
- strengthen sentinel influenza surveillance for influenza-like illness and SARI;
- enhance national capacities to respond to outbreaks of respiratory infections;
- develop national clinical guidelines for treatment of SARI cases;
- enhance collaboration between stakeholders involved in influenza surveillance, and those involved in the animal and human influenza sectors.
Region-wide support
In addition to country-specific activities, the PIP Framework PC enables WHO/Europe to enhance its support to the Region-wide influenza surveillance network.
The main activities conducted for the network in 2014 were:
- a joint WHO/Europe and ECDC annual influenza surveillance meeting (11–13 June 2014 in Vienna, Austria);
- development and publication of a new joint WHO/Europe and ECDC influenza bulletin – FluNews Europe;
- laboratory training in genetic sequencing in collaboration with the Global Initiative for Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) and training in laboratory quality and biosafety.
