Disease surveillance particularly surveillance for communicable diseases is essential in identifying cases and preventing the occurrence of an outbreak. Surveillance can also contribute to reducing the size of an outbreak. In order to achieve these, surveillance activities must include all possible sites for case detection. The lack of established mechanisms to provide feedback to the surveillance system at all such points can cause a failure of the surveillance system. These are extremely relevant particularly in the current outbreak of Ebola in some parts of the West African Sub Region. Ghana, like many countries has established surveillance systems for specific diseases. Currently, 44 diseases/public health events including Ebola are under surveillance as part of an Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system. Although the Ministry of Health (MOH) exercises authority over issues of health, the operation of policies and practices on disease surveillance is by the Ghana Health Service (GHS), an agency of the MOH despite the existence of other agencies such as the teaching hospitals.
Objective
To describe Ghana’s disease surveillance system operation and the potential challenges in the light of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa