World Field Epidemiology Day 2024: Highlighting the power of collaboration

Celebrated annually on 7 September, World Field Epidemiology Day recognises the vital contributions of field epidemiologists in protecting public health and improving health security worldwide. The theme for 2024, Collaboration, emphasises the need for diverse and inclusive partnerships. 

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) plays a key role in field epidemiology through the ECDC Fellowship Programme (Intervention Epidemiology Training path (EPIET) and the Public Health Microbiology path (EUPHEM)), covering EU and EEA Member States. ECDC also oversees the Mediterranean and Black Sea Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (MediPIET), which supports European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) partner countries. 

Addressing the 2024 theme of Collaboration, Adam Roth, Head of the Fellowship Programmes at ECDC, stated: 

"The World Field Epidemiology Day 2024 is a good reminder of the strengths of field epidemiology and cross-border collaboration. To tackle the public health challenges of today, we need international cooperation and through the collective efforts of field epidemiologists across the globe we can better protect communities and respond rapidly to emerging health threats." 

ECDC is currently active on the ground in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with experts deployed through the EU Health Task Force mechanism. In partnership with the WHO-led Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), ECDC is supporting the WHO and the Ministry of Health in the DRC. 

To mark World Field Epidemiology Day, ECDC will share a series of videos with EPIET, EUPHEM and MediPIET fellows discussing their experiences in field epidemiology. Additionally, the episodes The Disease Detectives, How Do We Prepare Communities?, and Epidemiology in the Field from the ECDC: On Air podcast highlight the importance of field epidemiologists. 

Background 

World Field Epidemiology Day is dedicated to raising awareness and advocating for increased investment in field epidemiology and research. Policymakers across the globe are urged to implement strategies that empower the field epidemiology workforce, strengthening health systems and improving their capacity to respond to health emergencies, outbreaks, and pandemics. 

First observed in 2021, World Field Epidemiology Day is coordinated by the Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET), which includes the ECDC Fellowship Programme.