The patchwork systems of global and domestic monitoring for the next infectious disease threat should be expanded, linked and better funded; and public and private health agencies must improve coordination to be prepared for the next global disease threat, according to position statements from the Society for Health care Epidemiology of America (SHEA). " SHEA Position Statement on Pandemic Preparedness for Policymakers ," published in the journal Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology , draws from lessons learned in the COVID-19 pandemic to identify policy changes needed to bolster pandemic preparedness in light of weaknesses identified during COVID-19. "The pandemic underscored the vital need for better collaboration and robust preparedness strategies to prevent and mitigate the impact of infectious disease outbreaks," said SHEA President, Dr.
Tom Talbot, MD, in introducing the five-part series. "It is time to update policies from health systems to government agencies to ensure the health care workforce, communication plans, crucial supplies, data access , and disease surveillance position us for the next challenge." Multiple surveillance systems create a patchwork of networks with limited data coordination and uneven geographic distribution that interfere with the ability to track emerging infectious diseases, according to the policy document.
The writers recommend funding linkages among these disparate global and domestic surveillance systems, including government age.