1887
  1. Home
  2. Eurosurveillance
  3. Volume 28, Issue 36, 07/Sep/2023
  4. Article
Perspective Open Access
Like 0
Download

Abstract

We present the findings from the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) Alumni Network (EAN) Member Survey conducted in October to December 2021. The EAN consists of field epidemiologists (EPIET) and public health microbiologists (European Public Health Microbiology Training Programme (EUPHEM)) who stay connected after their 2-year fellowship. This active alumni network provides opportunities for career development, mentorship, knowledge exchange and sharing of best practices for community members, affiliated professionals and public health organisations in Europe. Overall, 281 of 732 members participated in the survey. Of the 192 European fellowship alumni respondents, 173 (90%) indicated that skills and competencies acquired during their fellowship improved performance in their role compared with their abilities before the fellowship. Reported skills and competencies that could be further strengthened included data management/analysis, communication, mathematical modelling and leadership/team management. The EAN Member Survey provides valuable feedback to the EAN, as well as the fellowship programme offices at the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and affiliated field epidemiology programmes. The COVID-19 pandemic was a stark reminder of how essential cross-border collaborations are for continued European health security. Maintaining and increasing the professional, well-trained workforce remains crucial for optimal response to infectious diseases and protection of public health.

© Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388
2023-09-07
2024-11-24
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388
Loading
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/eurosurveillance/28/36/eurosurv-28-36-7.html?itemId=/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). ECDC Fellowship Programme. Stockholm: ECDC. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/epiet-euphem/about/intro
  2. Bremer V, Bosman A, Coulombier D. New perspectives after the transition of EPIET to ECDC - the future of the programme. Euro Surveill. 2009;14(43):19374.  https://doi.org/10.2807/ese.14.43.19374-en  PMID: 19883558 
  3. European Commission. Regulation (EC) No 851/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 april 2004 establishing a European Centre for disease prevention and control. Official Journal of the European Union. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. 30.4.2004. L142/1. Available from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1416484529474&uri=CELEX:32004R0851
  4. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). What we do. Stockholm: ECDC. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-ecdc/what-we-do
  5. Richard A, Goodman JWB, and Mott JA. CDC Field Epidemiology Manual: Defining field epidemiology. Atlanta, GA: CDC; 2018. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/eis/field-epi-manual/chapters/Defining-Field-Epi.html
  6. Robert Koch Institute. Postgraduate Training for Applied Epidemiology (PAE) at the RKI: German Field Epidemiology Training Programme. Berlin: RKI. [Accessed: 21 Aug 2023]. Available from: https://www.rki.de/EN/Content/Institute/DepartmentsUnits/InfDiseaseEpidem/Epidemiology_Training_Programme.html
  7. United Kingdom Health Security Agency. UK Field Epidemiology Training Programme (UKFETP). London: gov.uk. [Accessed: 21 Aug 2023]. Available from: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/field-epidemiology-training-programme-fetp
  8. EPIET Alumni Network (EAN). How to become a member. EAN. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://epietalumni.net/become-a-member
  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Epidemic Intelligence Service: EIS Alumni Network. Atlanta: CDC. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/eis/who-we-are/alumni.html
  10. Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET). Our work. Decatur, GA: TEPHINET Secretariat. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://www.tephinet.org
  11. Pezzoli L, Keramarou M, Ladbury G, Jaramillo-Gutierrez G, Williams CJ, Le Menach A. Time, place, and people: composition of the EPIET Alumni Network and its contribution to the European public health resource in 2013. Epidemiol Infect. 2015;143(12):2539-46.  https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268814003392  PMID: 25521307 
  12. R Core Team. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna: R Foundation for Statistical Computing; 2020. Available from: https://www.R-project.org
  13. Batra N, et al. The Epidemiologist R Handbook. 2021. Available from:  https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4752646  or https://epirhandbook.com/en
  14. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). EpiInfo. Atlanta, GA: CDC. [Accessed: 19 Jul 2023]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/epiinfo/index.html
  15. EpiData Association. EpiData Software. Odense: EpiData Association. Available from: https://www.epidata.dk
  16. Parry AE, Kirk MD, Durrheim DN, Olowokure B, Colquhoun SM, Housen T. Shaping applied epidemiology workforce training to strengthen emergency response: a global survey of applied epidemiologists, 2019-2020. Hum Resour Health. 2021;19(1):58.  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-021-00603-1  PMID: 33926469 
  17. Hahné S, Hammer C, Tostmann A, Whelan J, Williams C. Field Epidemiology: Fit for the future. Euro Surveill. 2023;28(35):2300347.
  18. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Core competencies in applied infectious disease epidemiology in Europe. Stockholm: ECDC; 2022. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/core-competencies-applied-infectious-disease-epidemiology-europe
  19. Martin R, Fall IS. Field Epidemiology Training Programs to accelerate public health workforce development and global health security. Int J Infect Dis. 2021;110(Suppl 1):S3-5.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2021.08.021  PMID: 34518062 
  20. Griffith MM, Parry AE, Housen T, Stewart T, Kirk MD. COVID-19 and investment in applied epidemiology. Bull World Health Organ. 2022;100(7):415-415A https://doi.org/10.2471/BLT.22.288687  PMID: 35813518 
Field Epidemiology and Public Health Microbiology training: capturing the alumni perspectives of the training’s impact
<p class="citation"> <span>Citation style for this article:</span> <span class="meta-value authors"> <a href="/search?value1=Justine+Schaeffer&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Schaeffer Justine</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Charlotte+Christiane+Hammer&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Hammer Charlotte Christiane</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Iro+Evlampidou&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Evlampidou Iro</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Laura+Bubba&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Bubba Laura</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Zsofia+Igloi&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Igloi Zsofia</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Timoth%C3%A9e+Dub&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Dub Timothée</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Annika+Wendland&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Wendland Annika</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Jane+Whelan&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Whelan Jane</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Stine+Nielsen&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Nielsen Stine</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Amrish+Baidjoe&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Baidjoe Amrish</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Alma+Tostmann&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Tostmann Alma</a>, <a href="/search?value1=on+behalf+of+the+EPIET+Alumni+Network+Boards+2017%E2%80%932023&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">on behalf of the EPIET Alumni Network Boards 2017–2023</a></span>. Field Epidemiology and Public Health Microbiology training: capturing the alumni perspectives of the training’s impact. <a href="/content/ecdc">Euro Surveill.</a> 2023;28(36):pii=2300388. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388" title="doi link" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388</a> <span class="ES_Article_citation"> <span class="generated">Received</span>: 19 Jul 2023;&nbsp;&nbsp; <span class="generated">Accepted</span>: 22 Aug 2023 </span> </p>
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.36.2300388
Loading

Data & Media loading...

Supplementary data

Submit comment
Close
Comment moderation successfully completed
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error