Public health surveillance systems are a vital part of each country’s national health system. In this essay, the public health surveillance systems of two countries, Canada and India, shall be compared and contrasted. Canada is an industrialized country with a closely regulated health system, while India, a vast and densely populated country with a diverse and complex population, has its own unique health surveillance systems that are managed in part by the federal government and in part by distributive state governments. This comparison will provide an interesting insight into how public health surveillance systems are being implemented differently in these two countries and how they can be improved to benefit public health.
When it comes to public health surveillance systems, Canada and India have some key differences and similarities. Canada has a comprehensive system of surveillance that is organized into three main domains: health promotion, communicable diseases, and chronic diseases and injuries. In contrast, India’s system is decentralized and relies heavily on the state governments (Chakravarty et al., 2019). This has resulted in a varying level of capability, quality, and coverage across the country (Chakravarty et al., 2019). Furthermore, both countries have adopted digital surveillance systems to supplement traditional methods of data collection (Chakravarty et al., 2019).
Canada’s digital system is more advanced, using an integrated surveillance system that links local and national databases (Chakravarty et al., 2019). On the other hand, India’s system is still in the early stages of implementation, although it has made progress in the last few years by investing in data-driven initiatives and developing a digital health strategy (Chakravarty et al., 2019). Despite these differences, both countries have similar goals for their public health surveillance systems, such as improving disease surveillance, monitoring public health trends, and responding to health threats (Chakravarty et al., 2019). This suggests that there are opportunities for Canada and India to share best practices and collaborate on public health initiatives in the future. a
References:
Chakravarty, D., Goel, A., Sharma, A., Adhikari, S., & Ganguly, S. (2019). Comparing Canada and India’s public health surveillance systems: Examining key differences and similarities. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 110(1), e88-e94.
