ABSTRACT
Biosurveillance serves as a cornerstone of epidemiology in public health practice, while epidemiology-the study of the distribution of diseases and their determinants in populations-provides the framework for designing and shaping effective responses to current and emerging health threats that
CONTENTS
17.1 Current Operation of the Public Health Response System ................. 327 17.2 Current Strengths and Weaknesses of the Public Health
Detection and Response System ......................................................... 331 17.2.1 Physical and Electronic Connectivity .................................... 331 17.2.2 Collaboration across Sectors .................................................... 333 17.2.3 Laboratory Capacity for Rapid Diagnosis ............................. 335 17.2.4 Workforce Capacity ................................................................... 337
17.3 Maximizing Linkage between Detection and Response .................... 338 17.3.1 System Objectives Should Drive Design ................................ 339 17.3.2 Conducting Surveillance for Emerging Threats ................... 341
17.5 Conclusions ................................................................................................ 343 References ............................................................................................................ 344
menace society. To successfully link the activities and outputs of detection systems to effective responses, one must understand the origins and operations of the current public health system.
