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INPPAZ - PAHO - WHO GuiaVETA |
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Foreword In 1902, the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) was created, following a consensus among countries that there was a need to have an institution that could serve as an agency for the exchange of information on health, with a Pan-American focus on solutions to common health problems. Over the years, several information and surveillance systems have been successfully implemented in order to facilitate the prevention and control of diseases such as yellow fever and malaria that have plagued the Americas. Due to the scarcity or lack of information for action on food and water borne diseases (FBD), and inspired by the achievements in the prevention and control of other diseases, PAHO developed the Information System for Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases (SIRVETA) in the mid-1990s, as an integral part of a Regional Plan for Technical Cooperation in Food Safety. In order to activate the plan for the development of the System in the countries of the Americas, the first edition of the "Guidelines for the Establishment of Systems for the Epidemiological Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases and the Investigation of Outbreaks of Food Poisoning" (GUIAVETA), was published. With the implementation of the Foodborne Disease Surveillance System, countries were able to benefit both in surveillance and laboratory capacity with regard to the safety of foods. This situation complements the Resolution of the 53rd World Health Assembly held in 2000, in which it was agreed that the safety of foods is a priority, a decision motivated by the occurrence of important outbreaks transmitted by foods globally. These FBD do not only affect the individual's health, but also have economic implications for countries, thereby having a double negative effect. Epidemiological monitoring of FBD, including surveillance and laboratory monitoring, is the principal main tool in ensuring the safety of food and water, and is a key health sector role. It provides the needed assurance of the safety of the foods consumed by family members, communities, regions, nations, cities and countries of the Americas. It is hoped that this guide, revised through the collaborative efforts of INPPAZ, CAREC and CPC would serve as an effective and suitable tool with which to inform, train and support those activities related to Foodborne Disease Surveillance, at the national and regional levels, while making a significant contribution to the progress of the program at the local level, and thereby allowing for the prevention and control of this group of diseases in those countries and the safety of foods in the countries of the Americas. This publication is integral part of the Virtual Health Library of Food Safety (http://www.inppaz.org.ar /), coordinated by INPPAZ PAHO/ WHO, in the context of the Regional project of Virtual Library in Health (http://www.bireme.br /) promoted by the PAHO through the Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information, BIREME PAHO/WHO.
INPPAZ - PAHO - WHO
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