Archived
June, 2007 |
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Hispanic Health Program
BORDER
INFECTIOUS DISEASE
SURVEILLANCE
WHAT IS THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM?
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The U.S.-Mexico border
is the busiest international border in the world with 250-400
million people crossing the border. |
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More than 11 million
people reside along the border. The U.S. border population is
growing at three times the
national rate. The Mexican border population is expected to
double by 2006. |
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The U.S. border region
contains five of seven of the poorest U.S. Metropolitan Statistical
Areas. |
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Large population
movement, limited public health infrastructure and poor
environmental conditions contribute to
increased risk for infectious diseases in the border region. |
WHAT HAS CDC
ACCOMPLISHED?
The Border Infectious
Disease Surveillance program (BIDS) is the first binational, syndromic
surveillance system for infectious diseases in the U.S.-Mexico
border region. Before BIDS, there was a wide
gap in border disease surveillance and no system to assess this unique
zone. Surveillance case definitions used in
the two countries were frequently incompatible, and laboratory
confirmation was often unavailable in Mexico.
BIDS has bridged this surveillance gap by forming partnerships among
local, state, and federal institutions and
public health authorities serving the region. Surveillance efforts are
focusing initially on hepatitis (A,B,C,D,E) and febrile exanthems
(measles, rubella, dengue, typhus,
ehrlichiosis) in 13 clinical facilities in 9 cities in the U.S. and
Mexico. CDC’s investment in BIDS serves as a
seed for the development of a comprehensive border epidemiology and
laboratory infrastructure. BIDS will provide
data to guide the development of effective public health prevention and
emergency preparedness strategies.
Example of program in action: |
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Over 1000 cases have been
identified and serum specimens tested. Binational data
and information sharing protocols have been developed. BIDS was
key to the binational dengue outbreak
investigation in Texas/Tamaulipas and the measles investigation in
California, Mexico/Baja, CA. |
WHAT ARE THE NEXT
STEPS?
The
need for well trained minority epidemiologists, especially
Hispanic/Latino, remains high. In an effort to meet these and future
demands, the EIS Program will work to increase the number of minorities
entering the program and those being assigned to state and local health
departments in future years. This will be done in concert with increased
marketing of the program to the Hispanic Serving Health Professions
Schools.
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Enhance epidemiology and laboratory infrastructure in the border
region. |
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Establish binational system of surveillance for all communicable
diseases. |
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Develop a system to provide early warning of diseases outbreak and
bioterrorism events and shared data for response, intervention, and
other prevention activities. |
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Design and evaluate improved infectious disease prevention programs
along the border. |
Back to the Hispanic/Latino Populations Page
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