Food Protection Trends - September/October 2013 - (Page 300)

PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLE Food Protection Trends, Vol 33, No. 5, p. 300–306 Copyright©2013, International Association for Food Protection 6200 Aurora Ave., Suite 200W, Des Moines, IA 50322-2864 A Successful Approach to Salmonella Surveillance: using student interviewers to improve foodborne disease Outbreak Response in New York City HAENA WAECHTER,* VASUDHA REDDy, HEATHER HANSON AND SHARON BALTER Bureau of Communicable disease, New York City dept. of health and Mental hygiene, 42-09 28th st. CN22A, Queens, NY 11101, usA ABSTRACT To improve the response to foodborne disease outbreaks, health departments should have adequate surveillance of such diseases. One key factor in accomplishing this is performance by health departments of timely hypothesis-generating interviews in cases of foodborne illness. In 2009, the New york City (NyC) Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) received funding from the Foodborne Diseases Centers for Outbreak Response Enhancement (FoodCORE) to hire students to perform all salmonellosis case-patient interviews. This study evaluated the effectiveness of implementing a student-interview model to conduct surveillance. Before enhancing surveillance, DOHMH interviewed only those salmonellosis case-patients associated with clusters or high-risk settings. Cases of salmonellosis diagnosed a year prior to enhancing surveillance (pre-enhanced surveillance) were compared with cases diagnosed the first and second years of enhanced surveillance. Overall, a higher proportion of case-patients were interviewed during year 1 (83%) and 2 (79%) of enhanced surveillance than during pre-enhanced surveillance (7%). When year 1 and 2 of enhanced and pre-enhanced surveillance were compared, case-patient interviews were more timely (median: 3, 2, and 21 days, respectively) and more case-patients answered all food-exposure questions (24%, 37%, and 2%, respectively). This approach to Salmonella surveillance appears to be successful and could be implemented in other health departments to cost-effectively expand epidemiologic capacity with a modest investment. *Author for correspondence: Phone: +1 347.396.2637; Fax: +1 347.396.2753; E-mail: hwaechte@health.nyc.gov 300 FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2013 http://www.foodprotection.org/files/food-protection-trends/Sep-Oct-13-waechter.pdf

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - September/October 2013

Food Protection Trends - September/October 2013
Commentary
Norovirus Attachment: Implications for Food Safety
A Successful Approach to Salmonella Surveillance: Using Student Interviewers to Improve Foodborne Disease Outbreak Response in New York City
Use of Surface Water in the Production of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables: A Survey of Fresh Produce Growers and Their Water Management Practices
Im Gloving It!
FSMA: Article 5
General Interest Paper
PDG Highlight
Beyond the Bio
Industry Products
Coming Events

Food Protection Trends - September/October 2013