Surveillance in Haiti

In response to the 2010 cholera outbreak, the Haitian Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP) established a National Cholera Surveillance System (NCSS) with technical assistance from CDC and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). The NCSS was developed to address immediate needs of capturing and summarizing daily reports, operating in affected areas, and being able to grow rapidly when needed.

The NCSS is composed of governmental and nongovernmental health facilities. It collects and reports data to the MSPP through health authorities in the departments and communes. The MSPP is responsible for managing, analyzing, and reporting all data.

Surveillance System Outputs

Haiti’s NCSS is an example of an effective surveillance system. Timely NCSS outputs helped:

• Direct clinical practice and interventions
• Inform need-based funding
• Track an epidemic and provide timely updates
• Mobilize support from technical and donor organizations

The data from the NCSS provide valuable feedback for distributing prevention and treatment resources, informing epidemiologic studies, and projecting the evolution of the epidemic. The NCSS also informs technical experts on options for the targeted use of oral cholera vaccine in Haiti.

Additionally, NCSS data have been essential in advocating for an international effort to eliminate cholera transmission on the island of Hispaniola. This effort is led by the governments of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, CDC, PAHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and other partners. For more information, see the Policy and Recommendations page.

For more information regarding the cholera surveillance system since the start of the cholera epidemic in Haiti, read Strengthening National Disease Surveillance and Response-Haiti, 2010–2015.

Read more on how CDC is supporting Haiti’s ongoing cholera surveillance efforts.