Evaluation of the collaborative integrated surveillance system (ViCo) in Guatemala: a qualitative study on lessons learned and future perspectives

BMC Public Health

Marines Reyes¹  Loren Cadena¹  Emily Zielinski-Gutierrez¹  Maria Del Rosario Polo¹  Andres Espinosa-Bode¹  Mariangeli Freitas Ning²  Terrence Lo³  Olga Henao³  Michael Park³  Jahn Jaramillo⁴ 

[1]Division of Global Health Protection, Central America Regional Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Guatemala City, Guatemala

[2]Division of Global Health Protection, Central America Regional Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Guatemala City, Guatemala

[3]Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network, Decatur, GA, USA

[4]Division of Global Health Protection, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA

[5]Public Health Institute/U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Global Health Fellowship Program, Oakland, CA, USA

[6]Division of Global Health Protection, Central America Regional Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Guatemala City, Guatemala

关键词: Evaluation;    Surveillance system;    Emerging infectious diseases;    Implementation;    Qualitative;    Interviews;    Guatemala;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-022-12719-7

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe collaborative integrated surveillance system known as Vigilancia Integrada Comunitaria (ViCo) was implemented in 2007 to better understand and characterize the burden of diarrheal, respiratory and febrile illnesses in Guatemala.MethodsTo evaluate the usefulness of ViCo and inform a redesign of the system and new surveillance activities in the Central American region, personnel from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted thirty-nine in-depth interviews from June—December 2018 with key stakeholders responsible for the design and implementation of ViCo in Guatemala. A semi-structured questionnaire adapted from the Updated CDC Guidelines for Evaluating Public Health Surveillance Systems was used for data collection. We used a grounded theory approach to explore stakeholder perceptions of ViCo and generate recommendations for improvement. Primary qualitative findings were organized based on thematic areas using ATLAS.ti version 8 software.ResultsEmergent themes relevant to the usefulness of ViCo were organized across strengths, weaknesses, and recommendations pertaining to the: (1) Size and Complexity of ViCo, (2) Stakeholder Expectations About the Objectives of ViCo, (3) Data Management and Structure of the Information System, (4) Local Control of Data, (5) Integration of ViCo within the Ministry of Health, and, (6) Improvement of the Operational and Design Aspects of ViCo across System, Process, and Output levels.ConclusionsStakeholders perceived ViCo to be useful. They recommended measures to improve system performance and quality, including simplifying the surveillance system, routine data analysis and feedback, and channeling efforts towards integrating surveillance data into the national health information system. To create a well-performing surveillance system and achieve the intended objective of surveillance for public health action, ongoing evaluation and assessment of surveillance activities are necessary.

【 授权许可】

CC BY