Program overview
The Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) of Colombia was founded in 1992 with support from the CDC. The program implements the three-level “pyramidal” training model for field epidemiology.
At present, the advanced-level program has 119 graduates who are in different regions of Colombia. At the basic level, more than 3,500 people have been trained to strengthen public health surveillance activities and the response to outbreaks. At the intermediate level, approximately 400 people have been trained in analysis of public health surveillance information and data, which allows the quick identification of unusual behaviors of public health interest events and, in the same way, facilitates decision making for timely response in controlling and mitigating the situations.
In the same vein, the program recently implemented Frontline-level training. This course is being implemented in Colombia in the territorial entities whose epidemiological situations require more attention and need to strengthen public health surveillance.
Thanks to the graduates and residents of different levels of the program, the country has obtained valuable information for making timely decisions in matters of public health, particularly in the case of outbreaks and epidemics.
