The evaluation of surveillance systems in veterinary public health: A scoping review on the attributes and assessment frameworks most commonly used
Abstract
Regular evaluation of disease surveillance programs is essential to ensure they provide reliable and useful information in an efficient manner. Surveillance systems' performance can be assessed using measurable characteristics, defined as attributes. This scoping review provides a global overview of the attributes and methodological frameworks used to assess veterinary public health surveillance systems over the past 15 years. A literature search was conducted on Pubmed and Scopus for studies published between 2010 and 2025, identifying 125 eligible studies, with 116 describing the evaluation of 157 surveillance systems, and nine describing an evaluation framework. The studies spanned all continents, with Europe, Africa, North America, and Asia being the most represented, and typically targeted multiple diseases or zoonoses such as avian influenza, bovine tuberculosis, and rabies. A total of 67 evaluation attributes were identified and analysed, highlighting both commonly used and underutilized measures of system performance. The evaluation frameworks represent useful available tools aiming to facilitate the evaluation of surveillance systems. However, their actual use is limited especially in the animal health domain, pointing to opportunities to strengthen evaluation practices. The evaluation of surveillance systems proved to be a relevant topic worldwide, encompassing human, animal health and One Health domains. The findings of this work provide valuable perspectives to…
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Evidence Hub reads this as a review, done in animal, not in people. Its evidence level is 5 of 5 (Very low · case / narrative / animal / in vitro / in silico). Case reports, narrative reviews, and animal, cell or computer-model studies give the weakest evidence for human health.
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