Deadline: 16-Jul-21
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) / Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is pleased to announce the Shoulder to Shoulder: Accompanying Ministries of Health in Central America in Strengthening Local and Global Health Security.
Purpose: Regional Capacity to detect and respond to emerging infections is variable and inadequate in Central America. Among the main public health problems in CA are limitations to efficiently review and analyze data and information; inconsistent quality in the national reference laboratories; insufficient regulations and standardization of technical and biosafety procedures for quality control and assurance and lack of integration of epidemiological surveillance, laboratory and hospital systems. This NOFO will provide opportunities for a partner to strengthen key systems needed to enhance global health security.
The CDC Central American Region (CAR) for Division for Global Health Protection (DGHP) covers 8 countries (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic).
This NOFO will provide opportunities for a partner to work closely with the CDC regional office in Central America, local and national public health programs, and other partners to strengthen key systems needed to enhance global health security and improve compliance with the revised International Health Regulations (IHR)2005, among the eight countries of the Central America Region.
Priority Areas
Priority areas may include (but are not limited to):
- Public health surveillance systems, including needs assessment, development/enhancement of surveillance processes, structures, and information systems, improved capacity to detect and control infectious disease outbreaks and other health threats, increased capacity to collect, analyze, and disseminate data; increased capacity to submit accurate, timely reports.
- Strengthening non-outbreak-related public health activities impacted by an outbreak.
- Public health laboratory capacity strengthening, including increase testing for priority pathogens, biosafety/biosecurity, and quality management system monitoring and evaluation.
- Emergency and outbreak/epidemic response, including infection prevention and control, support for field-based disease control activities, border health, and vaccine preparedness.
- Component 1: Core Global Health Security Priorities
- Priority Area 1: Increased and Improved Public Health Surveillance Systems
- Established systems for linking suspect case reports and laboratory data supporting both detection and response activities for notifiable priority diseases.
- Increased number of countries with functioning, multi-disease technologies used for routine reporting, such as public health electronic surveillance systems.
- Improved capacity to detect emerging threats of public health concern.
- Conduct continuous monitoring and rapid verification of infectious disease outbreaks and public health events.
- Establish effective systems to support rapid detection of pathogens with epidemic potential.
- Improved regional integration and quality of surveillance data.
- Improved regional collaboration on surveillance activities.
- Priority Area 2: Strengthening of Non-outbreak-related Public Health Activities Impacted by Outbreaks
- Improved capacity in developing evidence-based policies and programs.
- Increased development and implementation of National Action Plans and detection, prevention and control of priority areas negatively impacted by outbreaks. This includes national and regional plans for hospital-acquired infection and anti-microbial resistance as well as enteric capacity assessments.
- Priority Area 3: Enhanced Public Health Laboratory Capacity
- Increased development of regional laboratory surveillance protocols and guidelines in support of a regional epi/lab surveillance network. Increased linkages between epidemiological and laboratory data and use of a central data platform.
- Increased recognition of regional laboratories through international accreditation.
- Increased support for lab identification of causative pathogens.
- Improved quality of laboratory data and timeliness of reporting.
- Increased capacity of national laboratories and surveillance systems.
- Increased collaboration among regional labs.
- Increased use of regional reference labs to test unknown specimens and confirm lab results.
- Enhanced systems to support rapid detection of pathogens with epidemic potential.
- Priority Area 4: Enhanced Emergency and Outbreak/Epidemic Response
- Increased outbreak and disaster response plans developed and implemented in the region.
- Increased capacity of emergency/outbreak response in the countries of the region.
- Increased number of outbreaks investigated and responded to by the countries of the region.
- Sustained improvements by host government in response time and quality of response for outbreaks and other emergencies.
- Priority Area 1: Increased and Improved Public Health Surveillance Systems
- Components 2, 3, and 4: Rapid Response to Small-Scale and Large-Scale Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Infectious Disease Threats (EIDT)
- Strengthened coordination and robust emergency preparedness and response capacities.
- Improved disease outbreak case management and infection control.
- Shortened time to detect highly infectious disease outbreaks through active surveillance and case finding.
- Reduced transmission of highly infectious diseases in clinical and community settings.
- Increased awareness, knowledge, and support for local disease outbreak response and prevention efforts at the community level.
- Rapid identification and containment of highly infectious disease outbreaks.
- Reduced time to reinvigorated public health activities that have been interrupted or slowed due to outbreak response.
- Increased capacity of countries for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks.
- Sustained improvements in timeliness of achieving outbreak/epidemic/pandemic control.
- Reduced morbidity and mortality attributed to disease outbreaks or other public health threats.
- Improved preparedness for potential future outbreaks and other highly infectious diseases.
Funding Information
- Approximate Total Fiscal Year Funding: $ 42,000,000
- Total Period of Performance Funding: $ 210,000,000
- Estimated Total Funding: $ 210,000,000
- Total Period of Performance Length: 5 year(s)
- Estimated Award Date: September 30, 2021
- Budget Period Length: 12 month(s)
Eligibility Criteria
- State governments or their bona fide agents (includes the District of Columbia)
- Local governments or their bona fide agents
- Territorial governments or their bona fide agents in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianna Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau
- State controlled institutions of higher education
- American Indian or Alaska Native tribal governments (federally recognized or state-recognized)
- Non-government Organizations
- American Indian or Alaska native tribally designated organizations
- Other
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=329358