Assessment of Vaccine Preventable Disease Surveillance Systems in Georgia

摘要

Surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) is an important part of estimating burden of diseases, identifying pockets of susceptibility, deciding on appropriate measures to prevent and control outbreaks, and formulating policy recommendations to reduce disease burden. A comprehensive understanding of the current Georgian VPD surveillance system is needed in order to provide specific recommendations for system strengthening, on which a plan outlining specific activities for future cooperation can be built. This comprehensive assessment of the Georgian VPD surveillance system identifies major problems in the Georgian health system that limit the ability of current surveillance efforts to provide quality information to guide public health actions. Key findings include: the structural and organizational linkages and relationships between institutions responsible for VPD surveillance are not well established; a significant number of VPD cases are not recorded by the current system and are treated outside the formal system; VPD surveillance suffers from a lack of clear and recognized standards for case detection, investigation, and control; lack of proper specimen handling and transportation capacity compromises the laboratory confirmation; the system lacks sufficient resources to fully implement VPD surveillance. Strategic directions for VPD surveillance strengthening to counter these problems are also presented.