Centre for Disease Control to open India centre

With the Center for Disease Control (CDC) all set to establish a unit in India,identifying new viruses and promptly containing new outbreaks will no longer be as tough as it used to be. The Global Disease Detection (GDD) Center will be the seventh after Kenya,Thailand,Guatemala,Egypt,China,and Kazakhstan. From emerging disease detection and response to influenza preparedness and response,GDD collaboration will help India strengthen public health systems and build essential infrastructure.

In reply to an email,CDC’s health communication specialist Dana L Pitts said it will train scientists and public health practitioners in the field of epidemology and laboratory methods as well as strengthen the healthcare system. “Influenza viruses,especially highly pathogenic avian influenza,remain the most urgent global infectious disease threat,” she said,adding that the centre will work towards development of influenza surveillance capacity—both laboratory and epidemiologic—in host countries,improving and expanding global surveillance networks,increasing virus isolation and epidemiological data collection through expansion of capacity,and increasing timely identification,reporting,and response to outbreaks.

“We do not have technology for molecular characterisation and virus isolation,so when H1N1 started spreading we had to get the kits from the US. Once this centre is established,we will have access to new technology and hopefully not face such obstacles,” a senior official at the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) said. “From the discussions that we have had with the CDC,we got the impression that they could not access our data. The new centre will be linked to the CDC so that they have a better deal about health related problems and their prevalence in India,” the official added.

Considering the trend of diseases with an animal origin,a zoonotic disease investigation and control unit will also be established at the centre. Focused efforts will also be made to strengthen communication with affected populations during outbreaks,and assure that public health responses are culturally,technologically and scientifically appropriate and disseminated in the most cost-effective,time-sensitive manner.