Background
This case study is based on a national situational analysis of disease surveillance in Peru that was conducted in 2022 using a One Health Framework that considers connections between human, animal, and environmental health sectors. The assessment was conducted by the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH) in Lima Peru, in collaboration with the International Training and Education Center for Health (I-TECH) at the University of Washington (UW) in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), on behalf of the Peruvian Ministry of Health (MINSA).
The overall goal of the assessment was to assess strengths and gaps in the public health surveillance system in Peru to inform public health surveillance strengthening efforts in the country. Having an adequate assessment of the system helps ensure the optimal design and implementation of efforts to respond to the unique surveillance needs in Peru. Some of the assessment findings and recommendations, as well as the approach, could be potentially transferable to other countries.
Like other countries, the COVID-19 pandemic further strained the health system in Peru including public health surveillance. Compounding this, Peru was experiencing some of the highest rates of mortality and morbidity1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic at the time of this assessment. MINSA prioritized assessing existing systems with the goal of identifying areas for program prioritization to strengthen the existing surveillance systems.
Acknowledgments
This assessment was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with technical support from the Global Epidemiology, Laboratory, and Surveillance Branch and the South America Regional Office. The Integrated Next-generation Surveillance in Global Health: Translation to Action (INSIGHT) project team, comprising Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia and the University of Washington’s International Training and Education Center for Health (I-TECH), would like to express appreciation to the multiple Peruvian agency representatives and the extensive number of respondents from the 24 regions who participated in the assessment. Thank you also to the stakeholders who participated in the study and workshop to review and develop action plans based on the situational analysis in Cusco, Peru, including the Presidency of the Council of Ministries, Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Environment in Peru, the Organismo Andino de Salud Convenio Hipólito Unanue (ORAS CONHU), Peruvian Infectious and Tropical Diseases Society (SPEIT), Mesa de Concertación para Lucha contra la Pobreza (MCLCP), Regional Government of Cusco, World Bank, USAID Perú and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Finally, a special thank you to Dr. Cesar Munayco and the Peru National Center for Epidemiology, Prevention and Disease Control (CDC Peru), who were responsible for leading secondary data analyses of existing surveillance data and providing input into the overall design of the assessment.
1 Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine . Baltimore, MD: Coronavirus Resource Center. Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Baltimore, MD, USA: 2021. [(accessed on 21 July 2021)]. Mortality Analyses: Cases and Mortality by Country. Available online.