The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has published new guidance for how countries in the EU and European Economic Area should track acute respiratory illnesses such as influenza and COVID-19.
The document sets out practical objectives for surveillance — the routine collection and analysis of health data — and describes the epidemiological and virological systems needed to meet them, the ECDC informed in a statement on Monday.
It also explains how using comparable data across countries can support prevention and control measures at both national and EU level, according to the guidance.
Modular updates and future additions
The guidance is designed as a modular tool that can be updated more quickly and flexibly as surveillance needs change, the organisation said.
Additional modules will be added as they are finalised over the next year.
Future editions may include emerging approaches such as detecting viruses in wastewater and using electronic health records.
