Disease Surveillance

Disease and mortality surveillance—the systematic collection, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of health data—is essential for monitoring disease trends, identifying emerging threats, and informing timely public health interventions. Effective surveillance is the heartbeat of public health security, enabling rapid containment of outbreaks, reducing morbidity and mortality, and strengthening national health systems through improved preparedness and response.

Surveillance systems have proven vital in controlling epidemic-prone diseases such as Ebola, Mpox, COVID-19, Cholera, Yellow Fever, and Measles.

Baylor Foundation Uganda (BFU), with support from multiple donors, has supported the Ministry of Health in been instrumental in helping Uganda meet its obligations under the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005). By strengthening national surveillance capacities, BFU is building resilience against current and future health threats.

Through data collection and analysis on disease prevalence, mortality trends, and transmission patterns, BFU-supported surveillance systems provide early warning signs of outbreaks—enabling timely response and containment.

We support in the implementation of:

• Indicator-Based Surveillance
  Routine collection and analysis of standardized health data from health facilities to monitor disease trends.
• Event-Based Surveillance
  BFU trains and deploys community health workers and Village Health Teams (VHTs) to detect and report unusual health events, especially in hard-to-reach areas. This strengthens the link between communities and formal health systems.
• Sentinel Surveillance
  Monitoring specific diseases at selected health facilities to understand trends and disease burden.
• Community-Based Surveillance
  Engaging local community members and volunteers to identify and report suspicious health events. BFU strengthens this through training of district surveillance officers, field epidemiologists, and Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs)—covering outbreak investigation, case reporting, contact tracing, and data analysis.
• Laboratory-Based Surveillance
  Linking surveillance with laboratory confirmation of suspected cases. BFU supports diagnostic capacity for outbreak verification and monitoring antimicrobial resistance.
• Syndromic Surveillance
  Tracking symptom patterns such as fever, diarrhea, or respiratory symptoms to detect outbreaks before lab results are available.
• Mortality Surveillance
  Monitoring death trends to identify unexpected spikes that may signal new or worsening public health threats.

All these systems are coordinated under Uganda’s Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) strategy—the national framework guiding surveillance and epidemic response efforts.

To further reinforce surveillance capacity, BFU has seconded a team of technical experts to the National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) and the Department of Integrated Epidemiology, Surveillance, and Public Health Emergencies. Their contributions have led to the rapid detection, investigation, and containment of 11 public health events to date—demonstrating the power of data-driven action and strategic partnerships in global health security.