ESCAIDE

The 'European Scientific Conference on Applied Infectious Disease Epidemiology' (ESCAIDE) is an annual conference with a focus on the latest in infectious diseases across Europe and the world, from field epidemiology to molecular biology, from analysis and evidence to guidance and public health policy. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) organizes the event in partnership with the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET), the EPIET Alumni network (EAN) and TEPHINET EUROPE (Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network).

ESCAIDE is the world-leading conference on applied infectious disease epidemiology. It brings together junior and senior experts from all related disciplines. The format includes formal scientific plenaries and sessions, as well as informal events and discussions on raw ideas, trends and methodological challenges (e.g. BarCamp@ESCAIDE).

History

The Conference developed from the Scientific Seminars held each year to give the EPIET fellows the opportunity to present their work in a scientific conference style. As the quality of the presentations and posters increased over time, it was decided to transform this event into a scientific conference which is open to the wider communicable disease surveillance community. Since 2007, the Conference received its name (ESCAIDE) and the management was taken over by ECDC. In the first years of the Conference, hosting alternated between Stockholm and city of an EU Member State or EEA. The inaugural ESCAIDE conference was held in Stockholm in 2007. Berlin hosted the first conference to be held outside Sweden in 2008, followed by Lisbon in 2010, and Edinburgh in 2012. Since 2013, the conference is hosted in Stockholm, the home of ECDC. Since 2007, ESCAIDE has been attracting eminent public health professionals from various backgrounds. The keynote address in 2013 was given by Dr. Peter Piot “No time to lose: of infectious diseases, science, politics and institutions” and in 2014 by Dr. Ilaria Capua “Close encounters of the third kind”.

Aims

The key goals of the Conference are:

strengthening and expanding the network of all those involved in applied infectious disease epidemiology;
sharing scientific knowledge and experience in this field in Europe and internationally; and
providing a dedicated platform for fellows of the EPIET/FETP (field epidemiology training program) to present their work.

Audience

The Conference is aimed at junior and senior experts from in all fields of communicable disease surveillance, prevention and control. This includes epidemiologists, microbiologists, clinicians, public health experts, and veterinary and environmental health experts with a professional and scientific interest in applied infectious disease epidemiology. The Conference brings together several groups of people involved in these areas including representatives from EU/EEA National Public Health Institutes, members of disease-specific surveillance networks, and EPIET/FETP/EUPHEM fellows and alumni. The audience also includes governmental, NGO and academic researchers from across Europe and the globe with an interest in infectious disease prevention and control. The Conference aims to expand its audience and include policy and decision makers but also experts from related disciplines, such as bioinformatics and modelling.

Organisers

ECDC

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is an agency of the European Union whose mission is to identify, assess and communicate current and emerging threats to human health posed by infectious diseases. The core activities of ECDC include surveillance and early warning; collection, evaluation and dissemination of relevant scientific and technical data; provision of scientific opinions and assistance, including training.^[1] ECDC is the lead behind the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) and the EU Public Health Microbiology training programme (EUPHEM), and the main sponsor of ESCAIDE.

EPIET

The European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) provides training and practical experience in intervention epidemiology at the national centres for surveillance and control of communicable diseases in the European Union (EU). It is aimed at EU medical practitioners, public-health nurses, microbiologists, veterinarians and other health professionals with previous experience in Public Health and a keen interest in epidemiology.^[2]

EAN

The EPIET Alumni Network (EAN) was created to help develop and maintain a network of European public health epidemiologists that have participated in the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) or other European Field Epidemiology Training Programmes (FETP).^[3] The EAN Board provides travel grants for participation at ESCAIDE and awards the best photo, oral and poster presentation at each conference (EAN prize).

TEPHINET

The Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET) is a professional network of 55 field epidemiology training programmes (FETPs) around the world. TEPHINET aims to strengthen international public health capacity by training field epidemiologists through an applied apprenticeship program.^[4]

References

External links

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