Developing national epidemiologic capacity to meet the challenges of emerging infections in Germany

In January 1996, the Robert Koch institute, Germany's national public healt h institute, began strengthening its epidemiologic capacity to respond to e merging and other infectious diseases. Six integrated strategies were initi ated: developing employee training, outbreak investigation, and epidemiolog ic research programs; strengthening surveillance systems; improving communi cations to program partners and constituents; and building international co llaborations. By December 1999, five employees had completed a 2-year appli ed epidemiology training program, 186 health department personnel had compl eted a 2-week training course, 27 outbreak investigations had been complete d, eight short-term research projects had been initiated, major surveillanc e and epidemiologic research efforts for foodborne and nosocomial infection s had begun, and 16 scientific manuscripts had been published or were in pr ess. The German experience indicates that, with a concerted effort, conside rable progress in building a national applied infectious disease program ca n be achieved in a short time frame.