Regional Epidemiology Units

Our role

We monitor infectious diseases, chemical and environmental hazards.

We help local health protection units investigate and control incidents and outbreaks.

We also give advice and support on communicable disease surveillance and infection control to:

• regional directors of public health and regional government offices
• local NHS trusts
• consultants in communicable disease control, clinicians, nurses, microbiologists and environmental health officers.

We share information and work jointly with other organisations such as The Association of Public Health Observatories.

 

How we do it

Each regional unit collects data about their area. We get our data from a range of surveillance data sources including:

• statutory notifications of infectious diseases (NOIDs) 
• sexually transmitted infections (STI) reports
• laboratory reports of infectious diseases such as:

MRSA and Clostridium difficile

Tuberculosis (TB)

Meningococcal disease e.g. meningitis, blood poisoning

Food poisoning

• antenatal screening for:

Hepatitis B

HIV and syphilis infections 

Rubella (German measles) immunity

 

Surveillance reports

Each unit analyses the data to build up a picture of trends in their region and issues regular reports based on the data, including:

• summary of meningococcal cases
• figures for TB, meningococcal disease and cryptosporidium
• reports on antenatal screening
• regular reports on incidents, notifications and laboratory reports .

The regional reports are collated by the Agency’s Centre for Infections which publishes national infectious diseases reports.

 

Last reviewed: 25 February 2009