ECDC public health microbiology strategy 2018–2022
This report outlines the microbiology strategy as well as actions, outcome indicators and performance targets for the delivery and evaluation of its execution over the period 2018–2022.
Executive Summary
Microbiology laboratories provide a first line of defence against health threats from communicable diseases and antimicrobial resistance. The ECDC provides scientific advice, capacity building activities and operational support to foster capable and responsive public health microbiology services for the European Union and beyond. ECDC’s vision is that by 2022 communicable disease and antimicrobial resistance threat detection, risk assessment, public health surveillance, and response in the EU/EEA will be underpinned by reliable and comparable microbiology data, shared and used in a timely manner. To this end, based on opportunities identified by monitoring laboratory capabilities in EU Member States since 2013 and progress achieved until 2017, ECDC will focus on five priorities for 2022:
- facilitating the technology transition to optimise EU-wide use of whole genome sequencing;
- benchmarking public health microbiology services and promoting best practices across the EU and beyond;
- further strengthening the EU public health microbiology capacity;
- strengthening the cross-sectorial and inter-agency integration of laboratory–based EU surveillance; and
- developing synergies with EU innovative laboratory methods and eHealth initiatives.
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