Public Health and Surveillance

Course Introduction

In today’s interconnected world, health threats emerge rapidly, from infectious disease outbreaks to environmental hazards and community-level rumors. Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) enables health systems to detect, verify, and respond to unusual events in real time, safeguarding populations and preventing crises. This course equips you with the knowledge and practical skills to contribute to EBS implementation at community, national, and global levels.

Some of the topics you will cover include;

• Public Health Surveillance
• Strategies for implementation of Event-based surveillance in Kenya
• Signal detection, reporting, triaging, verification, risk assessment, public health response and escalation
• EBS Training approach
• Mentorship and adult learning principles
• Monitoring, evaluation, and supportive supervision in EBS
•  Digital applications supporting EBS

When can you start?

Start straight away and join hundreds of enthusiastic EBS actors taking this course.

How long will it take you to finish this course?

This is a self-paced course, allowing you the flexibility to log in and finish the learning at your convenience. To successfully complete the material, we advise setting aside approximately 3–4 hours for each of the five units in this course.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Describe the background of Event-Based Surveillance
• Describe the process of Event-Based Surveillance
• Conduct training and mentorship for Event-Based Surveillance actors
• Implement monitoring and evaluation strategies in Event-Based Surveillance
• Utilize digital applications in Event-Based Surveillance
• Contribute to public health preparedness and response at local, national, and global levels

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for:

• EBS actors drawn from human, animal and environmental health
• Surveillance officers from all health care levels
• Humanitarian and emergencies responders
• Public health professionals, healthcare workers and policymakers
• Students and researchers interested in EBS

EBS skills are highly valued in outbreak preparedness, humanitarian response, and health system strengthening, making this course relevant for both new learners and experienced practitioners.

How can you achieve certification?

You will be awarded a digital certificate upon completion of all course requirements.

You will also acquire CPD points in-line with your regulatory body

What is the course completion criteria?

• Interact with all course materials, including knowledge checks.
• Attempt all end of unit assessments and attain the pass mark indicated for each assessment

Who will be your Course Facilitators?

	Course Facilitator’s Name
Unit One	1.    Caroline Cheptoo 2.    Philip Ngere 3.    Zephaniah Irura
Unit Two	1.    Cythia Musumba 2.    Wellington Odour
Unit Three	1.    Abdirizack Sheikh 2.    Wellington Odour 3.    Oscar Gaunya
Unit Four	1.    Komu Mutunga 2.    Yusuf Ajack 3.    Nargis Kaka, Martin
Unit Five	1.    Brian Kadenge 2.    Kadenge Yaya 3.    Charles Mugambi

How can you get support as you take this course?

Who developed the course?

This course was developed by the Division of Disease Surveillance and Response, Ministry of Health, Kenya, with technical and financial support from The Task Force for Global Health through the SONAR Initiative, funded by The Global Fund. Several partner organizations contributed valuable technical input throughout the course development process.

Disclaimer:

The pictures and images portrayed in this course are purely the work of the authors’ imagination, and are artificial intelligence (AI) generated. Where real images have been used, consent has been provided. Any resemblance to actual persons, events or localities is entirely coincidental.