Epicentre provides experts in public health and applied epidemiology for short-term consultancies. These experts are either members of our permanent research team or recruited from a roster of external consultants. Requesting agencies include MSF, other NGOs, bilateral and multilateral agencies, and the WHO. The following are types of studies and surveys conducted by Epicentre.

• Rapid health assessments in emergency situations
• Epidemic outbreak investigations
• Evaluation of health programs and health needs
• Implementation and evaluation of epidemiological surveillance programs
• Evaluation of national health information systems (HIS)

Rapid health assessments in emergency situations

Rapid assessment of the health status of a population is initiated by an evaluation of available surveillance data. In acute emergencies, cross-sectional sample surveys are nearly always required to obtain non-biased information on the most frequent diseases, mortality rates, nutritional status or the vaccination status of a population. Epicentre has carried out such studies in many emergency situations, and has developed a standard method for their implementation and analysis.
Recent consultancies

Read a report: Health assessment in emergencies, Murney and Zalingei, West Darfur, Sudan, by Evelyn Depoortere (June 2004)

Epidemic outbreak investigations

The objectives of such an investigation are to confirm the epidemic and to assess its magnitude, find the causal agent, describe disease transmission patterns and/or identify the groups at risk in the population, in order to implement appropriate disease control measures. To carry out these investigations, Epicentre is assisted by several international laboratories, in particular the Pasteur Institute of Paris, the Institute of Tropical Medicine of Antwerp, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) of Atlanta and the WHO Collaborating Center of Folkehelsa in Oslo.
Recent consultancies

Evaluation of health programs and health needs

Epidemiological methods are used for measuring the coverage and impact of public health programs, comparing strategies, and planning or re-focusing program activities. Evaluation includes analysis of surveillance data and may require the carrying out of a community health survey.
Recent consultancies

Implementation and evaluation of epidemiological surveillance programs

The purpose of surveillance systems is to provide the information necessary for the follow-up and evaluation of the impact of a health program, whether it is vertical or integrated. These development systems should be integrated with the health information network of the country, be as simple as possible, and encourage the analysis and use of operational data rather than exhaustive data collection. In providing technical assistance for the program, Epicentre works in collaboration with national and international authorities (MOH, NGOs, UN agencies). Depending on the partner's request, Epicentre can provide a single consultation, or a series of interventions throughout the duration of the project, including training and evaluation.
Recent consultancies

Evaluation of national health information systems (HIS)

In the context of institutional capacity-building programs, Epicentre offers assistance to the epidemiology or biostatistics committees of ministries of health. Evaluations are carried out in collaboration with national counterparts. Epicentre follow the internationally recognised evaluation criteria of the Centers for Diseases Control in Atlanta / WHO.
Recent consultancies

For additional information, please contact Vincent Brown at vincent.brown@epicentre.msf.org

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