Guidelines for second generation HIV surveillance - World Health ...

1.4. What this update includes
This update:
• re-emphasizes the key approaches to conducting HIV surveillance;
• highlights new methods, tools and thinking to make second generation surveillance more critical and
relevant to a country’s response to the HIV epidemic;
• gives guidance on using and interpreting surveillance data more effectively.
Since the Guidelines on second generation surveillance were published in 2000 (1), a number of other detailed
technical guidelines have been developed on specific surveillance topics. These are listed in Appendix B and
should be referred to for more detailed information on specific issues related to surveillance. Throughout this
update, references are given to technical documents that expand the application of surveillance methods.
Evaluating a National Surveillance System
1.5. Process (→ “From start to finish: the process of HIV surveillance”)
To address any epidemic, one must first Know your epidemic (4), then use the results of the analysis to
provide services to areas and groups that require them the most. This document provides guidance on
how to use second generation surveillance techniques to learn where most new HIV infections arise and to
assess the direction of the epidemic.
Figure 1.1 shows a general process for conducting HIV surveillance activities. It is important to remember
that because most countries have already developed HIV surveillance activities, all countries have some
data from past surveillance activities.
Figure 1.1. Process for implementing enhanced second generation surveillance techniques
The numbers in the process below refer to the sections and subsections of this document.
The remainder of this document discusses the process shown in Figure 1.1.
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