Strengthening Workforce

CDC works with ministries of health around the world to include NCD surveillance, management and data analysis into CDC-supported Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs). FETPs are country-owned programs modeled after the U.S. Epidemic Intelligence Service, and recognized worldwide as an effective means to build a corps of in-country field epidemiologists (“disease detectives”) able to strengthen their countries’ epidemiology, surveillance, and outbreak response workforce. FETP residents provide public health services while gaining essential skills to collect, analyze, and use data to prioritize health issues and inform policy decisions.

CDC has developed a series of training materials on NCDs, civil registration and vital statistics and maternal and child health. Since 2010, 500 FETP residents have been trained in chronic disease epidemiology and an additional 350 in specific NCD topics (e.g. cancer, tobacco, and road traffic injury). Additionally, 37 mini-grants have been awarded, and 15 articles on NCDs have been published in peer-reviewed publications.

Resources:

• Fact Sheet: Field Epidemiology Training Program: Improving NCD Surveillance and Data Analysis
• FETP NCD Training Modules
• Global Program for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Improvement
• Publications

Partners:

• African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET)
• Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network
• Southeast Asia Field Epidemiology and Technology Network (SAFETYNET)
• Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET)