University of Adelaide Retains Influenza Surveillance Role

The Australian Government Department of Health as retained the University of Adelaide  to carry out the role  to collect and report on influenza-like illness across Australia.
The University of Adelaide's  Australian Sentinel Practices Research Network (ASPREN) has carried out the role of collecting influenza data for 10- years, utilising a  network of more than 200 GPs and medical practices across each state and territory.
"This work provides vital and timely information to health authorities and aims to detect outbreaks in the community before they reach epidemic proportions," says the Director of ASPREN, Professor Nigel Stocks, who is Head of General Practice at the University of Adelaide.
"Typically, GPs will swab test patients exhibiting flu-like symptoms, and the results of these tests help to provide a national picture of the flu virus subtypes circulating in the community. It helps us to track which respiratory viruses are most common at a particular time of year, as well as providing information about the effectiveness of the current flu vaccine."
Professor Stocks says the frontline data collected by ASPREN's health network is used in conjunction with data from hospitals and the community to inform decision-making by the Federal Government.
"This work is critical in terms of being able to monitor and respond to impending pandemics. At a local level, it assists in planning for health care and support services when an alert for a pandemic is issued at a national or global level," he says.