Surveillance in Denmark
Surveillance of infectious diseases, microorganisms and vaccination coverage is a central part of the national and international disease preparedness
The surveillance system serves several purposes, for instance:
- Detection of disease outbreaks
- Estimation of tendencies and development over time
- Identification of population groups with special risks of certain diseases, i.e. incidence according to age, gender, geography, and personal characteristics in the form of for instance proceedings and ethnicity
- Estimation of efficiency of preventable measures such as public information, prevention campaigns, and vaccination programmes
- Detection of changes in bacteria and virus, e.g. occurrence of resistance towards antibiotics or certain pathogenic germs and - via this - prioritization of prevention and control
- Identification and solutions on research questions and hypotheses on infectious diseases
The Danish surveillance registres are of so high quality that the can often be used in connection with research projects.
Surveillance comprises continuous registration and analyses of possible problems, e.g. changes in occurrence, outbreaks, new microorganisms and resistance patterns or more virulent types of already well-known viruses.
A modern surveillance system comprises not only collection and registration of disease data but also timely and continuous communication of knowledge to the authorities responsible for treatment, responsible
The national surveillance system comprises only diseases of serious character, diseases that are particularly infectious, and most of the vaccine-preventable diseases.
Surveillance data are included in a cycle, in which the development is continuously analysed and outbreaks are detected and controlled
Last revised 29 September 2011