Global Foodborne Infections Network (GFN)

Building capacity to detect, control and prevent foodborne

and other enteric infections from farm to table

National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases

Division Of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases

Nirali Desai, MPH

GFN Vision and Mission

Vision A world where all countries prevent and control

foodborne and other enteric infections

Mission To enable countries to detect, control, and prevent

foodborne and other enteric infections by: Building capacity for integrated surveillance Fostering collaboration among human health, veterinary,

food and other relevant sectors.

What is GFN?

A network of professionals and institutions working in veterinary, food and public health disciplines committed to enhancing capacity of countries to conduct integrated surveillance of foodborne and other enteric infections

GFN Steering Committee

GFN Main Activities

International and Regional training courses External Quality Assurance System (EQAS) Country Data Bank (CDB) Focused regional and national projects Reference services CDC-specific technical expertise

International Training Courses

Progressive training cycle Microbiologists and Epidemiologists (Human,

Veterinary, and Food Disciplines) National and International formats Courses run between 4-7 days Bench training and table top exercises

International Training Courses

Microbiology Bench Training Global/Region-specific pathogens

(e.g., Salmonella, Campylobacter, E. coli, V. cholerae, S. Typhie, Brucella, Shigella, Listeria, C. botulinum)

Quality assurance Biosafety Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing Advanced methods

Epidemiology Training Outbreak detection and response Evaluation of surveillance systems Study design Source attribution Burden of disease Data management

Joint Epidemiology and Laboratory

Integrated surveillance Risk assessment Country Plans of Action Advocacy and

communication Information sharing

networks Project proposal writing

Cumulative Number of Participants Trained (2000-2013)

Focused Regional/National Projects Burden of Illness Studies (e.g. Jordan, Slovenia, the Caribbean) Enhanced Surveillance Studies (e.g. China, Fiji, Philippines, Kazakhstan)

Reference Services Verification of laboratory findings Assist with technical questions Participation in regional projects

CDC-specific technical expertise In 2012-2013, CDC GFN led and provided ongoing SME support and

training to institutions in:• Port-au-Prince, Haiti • Delhi, India• Almaty, Kazakhstan• Johannesburg, SA• CAREC• Brasilia, Brazil

After training – focus on project and program follow up

External Quality Assurance System (EQAS)

Aims To have laboratories evaluate their performance of

serotyping and antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST)

To improve quality of surveillance data To assess the quality of Salmonella serotyping and

AST in laboratories worldwide To evaluate the effectiveness of the training

courses To identify barriers for serotyping and AST

External Quality Assurance System (EQAS)

Proficiency test 8 anonymous strains of Salmonella and Shigella 4 Campylobacter isolates 1 blank sample Supplier of reference strain

Results Submitted through secure website Instant individual evaluation reports

Yearly cumulative evaluation reports posted online In 2012, 192 labs in 93 countries participated with a

decline in correct tests in both Salmonella serotyping and AST

GFN Country Databank GFN member institutions asked to provide access

to information about top 15 Salmonella serotypes from both human and non-human sources

As of 2013, over 2 million isolates and 359 different serotypes reported Over 1 million S. Enteritidis 400,000 S. Typhimurium

Global Impact of DFWED Activities

Thank you