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10th Southeast Asia and Western Pacific Bi-regional TEPHINET Scientific Conference

Overview

From November 1-5, 2021, the South Asia Field Epidemiology and Technology Network (SAFETYNET), the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and Taiwan Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) co-hosted the 10th South East Asia and Western Pacific Bi-Regional TEPHINET Scientific Conference.

This hybrid-format event showcased the work of Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs) at the forefront of disease surveillance and public health emergency and outbreak response. More than 400 attendees gathered virtually and in-person to hear 21 poster presentations, 67 oral presentations (22 poster and 80 oral abstracts were accepted, but not all presented) and plenary sessions on anthropology, re-emerging vaccine preventable diseases, one health approach to outbreak response, field epidemiology training development strategies, and communications, ethics and equity in public health emergencies.

Conference organizers also put together a virtual tour of Taipei that allowed those unable to attend in person the opportunity to enjoy some of the sights and sounds of the city.

Interactive Learning Sessions (ILS)
  • I am scared of (adverse events following) immunizations — vaccine safety evaluation and communication (Wan-Ting Huang [Brighton Collaboration], Angela Song-En Huang, Tsung-Pei Tsou [Taiwan Centers for Disease Control])
  • Developing FETP Curriculum for Field Epidemiology in Pandemics (Mallick Masum Billah [Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research)
  • EpiCore, Crowdsourcing Verification Activities Locally to Enable Epidemic Intelligence Worldwide (Jas Montero [Ending Pandemics])
  • Understanding Infectious Disease Modelling (Jodie McVernon, Michael Meehan [Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University], Patricia Campbell [University of Melbourne], Eamon Conway, Nefel Tellioglu)
  • Evaluating the Impact of Field Epidemiology Training (Tambri Housen [University of Newcastle]; Stephanie Wheeler, Rachel Mather, James Flint)
  • FETP From Face-to-Face to Blended Modality (Haitham Bashier, Ahmad Al-Talafih, Abdalla Al-Qasrawi, Eman Nairoukh [Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPNET)])
  • Scientific Writing (Dorothy Southern [South Asia Field Epidemiology and Technology Network (SAFETYNET)]) 
  • Accreditation/Program Quality for Intermediate-Level FETPs (Lorie Burnett, Ashley Hill, Biagio Pedalino [TEPHINET]; Reina Turcios-Ruiz [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention])
Keynote and Plenary Sessions
  • Anthropology: A Timely Discipline for Field Epidemiologists (Profesor Shao-hua Liu)
  • Re-Emerging Vaccine Preventable Diseases (Jaymin Patel, Meru Sheel, Margie Danchin)
  • One Health Approach to Outbreak Response (Martyn David Kirk,  Sith Premashthira, Chen-Chih Chen)
  • Field Epidemiology Training Development Strategies (Kip Baggett, Carl Reddy, Manickam Ponnaiah, Tambri Housen, Berry Ropa)
  • Communication, Ethics, and Equity in Public Health Emergencies (Kumnuan Ungchusak, Steven Peng-Lim Ooi, Nina T. Castillo-Carandang)

Oral and Poster Abstracts

We invite you to view the conference Book of Abstracts to read the abstracts presented during this conference.

The abstracts will also be added to the Field Epidemiology Abstract Database (FEAD along with other abstracts presented at TEPHINET conferences since December 2016.

Awards

Oral Presentations 

  • 1st Place: Epidemiological Features of Human Brucellosis in Georgia, 2015-2019—Mariam Pashalishvili, Mediterranean and Black Sea FETP (MediPIET)
  • 2nd Place: Retrospective Epidemiological Analysis of SARS-CoV2 Wastewater Surveillance and Case Notifications Data — New South Wales, Australia, 2020—Hendrik Camphor, MAE, Australia
  • 2nd Place (tie): Case Investigation of Animal Rabies Near Thai-Myanmar Border, Northern Thailand, February-March 2020—Suwitcha Panchakhan, Regional FETP-V Thailand
  • 3rd Place: COVID-19 Surveillance among Filipino Repatriates from MV Diamond Princess in Japan, Capas, Tarlac, Philippines, February 25-March 11, 2020—Richelle Abellera, Philippines FETP

Poster Presentations

  • 1st Place: Dengue Fever Outbreak Investigation in Al-Hurriya Village, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, 2020—Sumia Alturki, Yemen FETP
  • 2nd Place: Identifying the Scope of Task Shifting for Delivering Community-based Hypertension Control Program in Bhopal Disrict, Madhya Pradesh, India—Ashish Krishna, FETP NCD, India
  • 3rd Place: The First Month COVID-19 Cases in Indonesia: The Epidemiology and Its Outcome—Defi Amalia Setia Ningrum, Indonesia FETP
     
Photo Contest

In the tradition of other TEPHINET conferences, TEPHINET held a photo contest for authors who submitted abstracts for presentation. The goal of TEPHINET’s photo contests is to increase the visibility and convey the value of the work of FETPs through the visually compelling medium of photography. TEPHINET received 75 photographs, all of which can be viewed here. 

  • 1st place: Ma. Ivy Rozeth Saavedra-Iturralde (Philippines FETP)
  • 2nd place: Werenfridus Leonardo Luan (Indonesia FETP)
  • 3rd place: Dagmawi Abebe (Ethiopia FELTP)
  • 4th place (Facebook winner): Salwa Yahya Mohammed Al-Eryani (Yemen FETP)
Acknowledgements

TEPHINET would like to thank SAFETYNET and Taiwan CDC for co-hosting this event.

Photo Contest Winners

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1st place, Ma. Ivy Rozeth Saavedra-Iturralde, Philippines FETP; Field investigation on vaccine-derived poliovirus type 1 with FETP fellows and local public health personnel in a southern Mindanao Island, Philippines, November 2019

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2nd place, Werenfridus Leonardo Luan, Indonesia FETP; "Fogging focus" - This activity is carried out in the context of overcoming dengue hemorrhagic fever, which aims to kill adult Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with the dengue virus so that there is no person-to-person transmission. This activity was carried out in Tugu sub-district, Guava village, Trenggalek district, East Java province on January 21, 2020. This collection was carried out during field practice 1: analysis of health problems in the health office of Trenggalek district, East Java province.

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3rd place, Dagmawi Abebe, Ethiopia FETP; A photo was taken during a surveillance data analysis activity, the place is at Dire Dawa, Ethiopia. Date photo captured on April 25, 2021. The one who on the photograph is a field epidemiology resident in epidemiologic surveillance activity.

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4th place (Facebook winner), Salwa Yahya Mohammed Al-Eryani, Yemen FETP; As an intervention during a measles outbreak, a vitamin A supplement for measles contacts was given by a Y-FETP resident in Amran, Yemen on March 17, 2021.

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