Overview

Manager: Carol El-Hayek

In Australia, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) notifications have been on the rise for the past decade. The Surveillance and Evaluation team conducts surveillance for HIV and STIs on behalf of the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments.

This group also conducts rigorous evaluations of projects and programs aimed at better understanding the transmission and prevention of communicable diseases, including HIV and STIs and the health and well being of affected populations.

Objectives

• Managing, developing and refining innovative surveillance systems for the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments to better understand the drivers of HIV and other STI transmission
• Undertake evaluation projects to examine the effectiveness of policy and initiatives aimed at reducing the transmission and impact of communicable diseases, including blood borne viruses and STI
• Integrating findings from our surveillance, epidemiology and research to inform policy and practice to prevent the transmission of diseases such as HIV and other STI transmission

Highlights

• The Surveillance and Evaluation group continue to evaluate Victorian HIV and other STI prevention initiatives
• The Victorian Primary Care Network for Sentiel Surveillance on Blood Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmitted Infections (VPCNSS) - The VPCNSS is an innovative surveillance system that links HIV and other STI testing and behavioural data from clinics that see high numbers of at-risk patients - men who have sex with men and young people. By collecting and linking individuals testing and behavioural data, the VPCNSS is able to provide reliable data on trends in incidence of STIs and deliver unique insights into the drivers of these transmissions in Australia.
• In partnership with the Kirby Institute (University of NSW), the Burnet Institute established the Australian Collaboration for Chlamydia Enhanced Sentinel Surveillance (ACCESS). ACCESS collects information nationally on chlamydia testing an prevalence of chlamydia infection in a range of priority populations including men who have sex with men and Indigenous people.

Projects

• Communicable disease screening and prevalence among migrants
  A study to improve communicable disease health outcomes among migrants entering Australia.
• Evaluation of the Multicultural Drug and Alcohol Service
  Formative and outcome evaluations of a new alcohol and drug service for South Sudanese youth, their families and communities.
• Improving Hepatitis B Virus screening in general practice in Victoria
  Knowledge, attitudes and practices of HBV screening by GPs in Victoria, and an intervention to improve screening among priority populations.
• Natural history and response to treatment recent hepatitis C virus infection among a cluster of HCV genotype-1b infected individuals
  A cohort of women was exposed to hepatitis C virus (HCV) in a health care setting to a common source. The source was chronically infected with HCV genotype 1b.
• SRH survey of Chinese-speaking international students
  A survey of international students' sexual behaviors, knowledge of STIs, sexual education and pornography.