Infectious Diseases

Portals

• Visit the Infectious Diseases Portal
• Visit the HIV/AIDS Portal
  

Current Projects

• Canadian Coalition for Immunization Awareness & Promotion
  The Canadian Coalition for Immunization Awareness & Promotion is a partnership of national non-governmental, professional, health, consumer, government and private sector organizations with a specific interest in promoting the understanding and use of vaccines recommended by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization. The goal of the CCIAP is to contribute to the control/elimination/eradication of vaccine preventable diseases in Canada by increasing awareness of the benefits and risks of immunization for all ages via education, promotion, advocacy and media relations.
  http://immunize.ca

• Canadian International Immunization Initiative
  CPHA identifies and recruits Canadian technical consultants to assist the World Health organization, UNICEF and Ministries of Health in strengthening national childhood immunization systems to work towards polio eradication, the elimination of measles and the combating of childhood diseases in low- and middle- income countries around the world. As of May 2008, CIII-2 has supported 115 technical missions conducted by 71 Canadian experts in immunization, public health and primary health care to 41 countries to work with Ministries of Health to improve access to immunization services for children and women and to improve the quality of such services. CIII-2 is also supporting social mobilization projects in support of immunization awareness and uptake with the Ethiopian Public Health Association, the Public Health Association of Niger and the Uganda National Association of Community and Occupational Health.
  Partners: Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), World Health Organization (WHO), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), UNICEF and Rotary International.

• Infectious Disease Outbreaks, an online CME
  The Immunization and Respiratory Infections Division of the Public Health Agency of Canada in collaboration with the Canadian Public Health Association and Memorial University of Newfoundland are pleased to announce the launch of Infectious Disease Outbreaks: Tools and strategies for front-line clinicians, an online course resulting from the project Early Detection and Response Course for Health Professionals in Canada. The Infectious Disease Outbreaks course is aimed primarily at front-line clinicians, including family doctors, emergency physicians, paediatricians, nurses, nurse practitioners, and outpost nurses. It has also been accredited by the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the Fédération des médecins ominipraticiens du Québec, and has been endorsed by the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Public Health Network Council. The course assists in increasing Canada’s capacity to detect, report and contain emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases of public health significance and also meets national surveillance and laboratory requirements as well as international surveillance requirements.
  To register, go to www.publichealth.gc.ca/outbreaks-course
  

Recent Projects

• Canadian HIV/AIDS Information Centre
  The Information Centre provides information on HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support to the public health community, AIDS service organizations, schools and a broad range of other groups and individuals.
  

• Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC) HIV/AIDS Project
  CPHA provided technical expertise to the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre’s (CAREC) Special Program on Sexually Transmitted Infections (SPSTI) in the areas of disease surveillance and epidemiological research, health promotion strategies for targeted populations, program planning and policy development, HIV/AIDS care and treatment, information delivery, and NGO capacity building.  The project included an organizational assessment of CAREC’s Special Programme on Sexually Transmitted Diseases, which is responsible for the regional HIV/AIDS program.
  Partners: Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC)

• Developing Community Competence for HIV and AIDS in Southern Africa
  Following its December 2003 registration as a regional NGO in Zimbabwe (the Southern African AIDS Trust - SAT), the Southern African AIDS Training Programme was renamed the Community Competence Development for HIV Prevention Project (CCP). CCP works to strengthen the ability of communities to respond to HIV and AIDS. One of its key strengths and accomplishments is its ability to work on capacity building and organizational development with small, emerging, community-level NGOs. Once self-sufficient, these groups graduate, often providing mentorship and training to new organizations.  Since the launch of the Phase III initiative, the project has provided assistance to over 150 local NGOs and AIDS Service Organizations in Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
  Partner: Southern African AIDS Trust (SAT), in partnership with over 150 African NGOs

• HIV/AIDS Affiliate to the Canadian Health Network (CHN)
  The CHN is a national, non-profit, bilingual web-based health information service. The CHN's goal is to help Canadians find the information they're looking for on how to stay healthy and prevent disease. Managed by the Public Health Agency of Canada and built on the expertise of non-governmental organizations such as the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA), this unique collaboration is one of the most dynamic and comprehensive networks in the world. As the HIV/AIDS Affiliate, CPHA is responsible for the CHN's collection of HIV/AIDS web resources.

• HIV/AIDS Prevention in the Balkans and Eastern Europe
  In 2001, CPHA was awarded a three-year contract with UNICEF to strengthen national responses to HIV/AIDS particularly as it relates to young people in the region. The purpose of the contract was to identify appropriate Canadian technical expertise and to provide training, guidance and advice related to the development of appropriate HIV programs and policies.  CPHA worked with the UNICEF Area Office for the Balkans (located in Sarajevo), the UNICEF office in Romania (which also covered Bulgaria) and the UNICEF Office in Moldova and partnered with government agencies, AIDS committees and non-government organizations, to enhance HIV/AIDS related capacity in the region.
  
  CPHA technical assistance included (but is not limited to): the co-ordination of a rapid assessment and response study related to HIV transmission Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Albania and the UN administered province of Kosovo; training of trainers on voluntary confidential counselling and testing in Macedonia and Serbia; situational analysis related to prevention of mother to child transmission in Serbia; strengthening of HIV surveillance systems in Bulgaria and Macedonia; partnering with the Romanian Ministry of Justice to develop appropriate prison based HIV prevention programs; supporting the development and implementation of national HIV/AIDS strategic plans and building HIV/AIDS communication strategies in Moldova and Bulgaria.  CPHA also hosted technical study tours to Canada for representatives from non-government and government organizations in the region. These study tours provided opportunities for dialogue and information sharing on HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and support with Canadian counterparts.

• Prevent, Prepare, Protect
  A pandemic influenza outbreak has the potential to overwhelm Canada's healthcare system, disrupt the economy and contribute to social unease. Consistent messaging from a variety of credible sources, we believe, will assist in slowing the spread of the disease. CPHA is working with many partners to strengthen communications about pandemic influenza. Our goal is to educate and promote awareness of pandemic influenza within Canada by supporting and enhancing government initiatives.
  Final report (PDF: 5.4mb), executive summary (PDF: 39kb)
  Partner: Public Health Agency of Canada
  Contact: Greg Penney at gpenney@cpha.ca

• Primary care readiness for a pandemic influenza
  Public health can play an important consultative/coordination role in supporting the development of “best practices” in the provision of primary care during a pandemic public health emergency. For this initiative, CPHA worked in partnership with the College of Family Physicians of Canada to develop two fact sheets to assist family physicians in the event of an influenza pandemic: Preparing for pandemic influenza: What family physicians should know and How to maintain your family practice during pandemic influenza. These fact sheets were evidence-informed through research, key informant interviews, surveys and a roundtable.