November 2004

Information

Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN)

• What is the Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN)?
• What types of surveillance does GPHIN conduct?
• What are the benefits of GPHIN?
• Who uses GPHIN?
• What is the operating system for GPHIN?
• Is there a cost to subscribe to GPHIN?
• Who manages GPHIN?

What is the Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN)?

GPHIN is a secure, Internet-based "early warning" system that gathers preliminary reports of public health significance in seven languages on a real-time, 24/7 basis.

This unique, multilingual system gathers and disseminates relevant information on disease outbreaks and other public health events by monitoring global media sources such as news wires and web sites. The information is filtered for relevancy by an automated process, and then analyzed by Public Health Agency of Canada GPHIN officials. The output is categorized and made accessible to users. Notifications about public health events that may have serious public health consequences are immediately forwarded to users.

What types of surveillance does GPHIN conduct?

GPHIN has a broad scope. It tracks topics such as disease outbreaks, infectious diseases, contaminated food and water, bio-terrorism and exposure to chemical and radio-nuclear agents, and natural disasters. It also monitors issues related to the safety of products, drugs and medical devices.

What are the benefits of GPHIN?

GPHIN is an invaluable tool that provides an organization with the information necessary to better respond to emerging health risks around the world.

The network is a low-cost, effective early warning instrument for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear public health threats worldwide, such as emerging infectious diseases.

GPHIN can quickly monitor media sources worldwide, including news feeds and web sites, and provide organized, relevant information on a real-time, 24/7 basis, allowing an organization to respond to potential public health threats in a timely manner.

GPHIN II is an adaptable system with multilingual capacity in Arabic, English, French, Russian, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, and Spanish. Users can review the documents in the language of their choice. It also translates articles from English to the other languages, and vice versa. In the future, additional languages will be added to GPHIN's capacity.

Additional highlights:

• early warning for outbreaks and other public health events;
• ability to track public health events of domestic and international concern;
• real-time, 24/7 coverage of media sources from six continents (Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, North America, South America);
• state-of-the-art technology;
• automated alert function to notify users of public health events;
• automated search function to quickly identify relevant reports;
• customized to user needs; and
• cost-effective method of conducting public health surveillance that can complement other surveillance activities.

Who uses GPHIN?

Users include non-governmental agencies and organizations, as well as government authorities worldwide who conduct public health surveillance. GPHIN is used by the global public health community in its efforts to minimize health risks by providing the information necessary to develop appropriate risk management, control and prevention measures and responses.

What is the operating system for GPHIN?

GPHIN is a web-based Microsoft / Java application that is tuned to the features of Internet Explorer 6.0 (or better) or Netscape 6.2 (or better) web browsers. Users need not worry about compatibility of their operating system.

Is there a cost to subscribe to GPHIN?

Yes. The cost is based on a number of factors such as the type or organization (e.g., government, non-government, university), the number of users, and the client's required customized features.

Who manages GPHIN?

GPHIN was developed by the Public Health Agency of Canada, which serves as the nerve centre for Canada's expertise and research in public health, effectively coordinating efforts with other partners to identify, reduce and respond to public health risks and threats. The Agency also acts as a hub for health surveillance and disease control programs.

GPHIN is managed by the Agency's Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response (CEPR), which was created in July 2000 to serve as Canada's central coordinating point for public health security. It is considered a centre of expertise in the area of civic emergencies, including natural disasters and malicious acts with health repercussions. CEPR offers a number of practical supports to municipalities, provinces and territories, and to international partners involved in first response and public health security. This is achieved through its network of public health, emergency health services, and emergency social services contacts.

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