What is an outbreak response?
Ans: An outbreak response includes co-ordinated response, provision of services and resources, provision of an expertise and consultation, facilitating documentation and timely distribution, providing data for policy and practice and opportunities for training. It requires preparedness on the part of public health, laboratory and clinical medicine. Outbreak investigation is an important component of outbreak response. Outbreak response also includes the efforts to prevent and control the outbreaks. Laboratory provides the lead in diagnosis or confirmation of an outbreak by investigating and sampling representative cases, contacts and controls. Also, the laboratory helps in tracking the outbreak by retrospective investigation and prospective surveillance.
