Catalogue of courses on prevention and control of communicable diseases : 2018 survey among ASPHER members.
Date: 2019-01-03
Institutions: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
Subjects: catalogue, continuing vocational training, disease prevention, health care, health care profession, infectious disease, medical training, public health, public hygiene, sample survey

ECDC CORPORATE

Catalogue of courses on 
prevention and control of 
communicable diseases

2018 survey among ASPHER members

www.ecdc.europa.eu

ECDC CORPORATE 

Catalogue of courses on prevention and 
control of communicable diseases 

2018 survey among ASPHER members 

 
 
This course catalogue was compiled by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), prepared 
by Doris Xiomara Monroy Parada (ECDC study visitor and Specialist in Preventive Medicine and Public Health of 
Albacete University Teaching Hospital Complex, Albacete, Spain), coordinated by Carmen Varela Santos (Head of 
Section Public Health Training, ECDC PHC) and Miguel Ángel Royo Bordonada (Head of the Studies Area - Escuela 
Nacional de Sanidad, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain), with technical and editorial advice from Jeanine 
Pommier (Senior Expert Pedagogy and Adult Learning, Public Health Training, ECDC PHC) and the support of Karl 
Ekdahl, (Head of Unit Public Health Capacity and Communication, ECDC PHC). 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

We would like to thank the following individuals (ASPHER members) for their contributions to the catalogue of 
prevention and control of communicable diseases courses, covering mostly the WHO European Region. 

Robert Otok (The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region – ASPHER Director) 
Louise Stjernberg (ASPHER Liaison for ECDC/The Swedish Red Cross University College) 
Jeannette de Boer (National Focal Point Public Health Training of the Netherlands/Netherlands School for Public 
and Occupational Health 

Bulgaria: Vanya Rangelova (Medical University Plovdiv-Faculty of Public Health), Gena Grancharova (Faculty of 
Public Health, Medical University of Pleven, Bulgaria) 
Croatia: Patricija Jankovic (University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Andrija Stampar School of Public Health) 
Cyprus: Giagkos Lavranos (Department of Health Sciences, European University Cyprus) 
Czech Republic: Alena Petrakova (Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, Palacky University, Olomouc) 
Finland: Pekka Nuorti (Health Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tampere, Finland (formerly School 
of Health Sciences) 
France: Pascal Crépey (Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Santé Publique) 
Germany: Christine Faerber (HAW Hamburg) 
Ireland: Mary Codd (School of Public Health, Physiotherapy & Sports Science) 
Israel: Ora Paltiel(Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine) 
Palestine1: Nuha El Sharif (Al Quds University School of Public Health), Mariam Al-Tell (An Najah National University) 
Poland: Joanna Gotlib (Medical University in Warsaw), Ewelina Wierzejska (Poznan University of Medical Sciences) 
Portugal: Tavares Margarida (Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto) 
Romania: Silvia Gabriela Scintee (National School of Public Health Management and Professional Development Bucharest) 
Slovak Republic: Zuzana Kristufkova (Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University, Bratislava) 
Slovenia: Sanela Pivač (Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care) 
Spain: Miguel Ángel Royo Bordonada (Spanish National School of Public Health), Vicent Calpe (Escola Valenciana 
d'Estudis de la Salut (Valencian School of Health Studies, EVES), Francisco Guillen Grima (Facultad de Ciencias de 
la Salud, Universidad Pública de Navarra) 
Sweden: Marja Schuster (Swedish Red Cross University College) 
Switzerland: Sandra Nocera (Swiss School of Public Health) 
The Netherlands: Jeannette De Boer (Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health), Christian Hoebe 
(Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI) 
Turkey: Gul Ergor (Dokuz Eylul University Medical School Dept of Public Health) 
United Kingdom: Andrew Lee (The University of Sheffield), Selena Gray (University of the West of England, Bristol), 
Nick Gent (Faculty of Public Health, London), Karl Blanchet (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). 

Suggested citation: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Catalogue of courses on the prevention 
and control of communicable diseases – 2018 survey among ASPHER members. Stockholm: ECDC; 2018. 

Stockholm, December 2018 

ISBN 978-92-9498-290-2 
DOI 10.2900/712474 
Catalogue number TQ-07-18-079-EN-N 

© European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, 2018 

Reproduction is authorised, provided the source is acknowledged. 

For any use or reproduction of photos or other material that is not under the EU copyright, permission must be 
sought directly from the copyright holders. 

1 This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions 
of the Member States on this issue. 

ii 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                                    
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Contents 
Abbreviations ....................................................................................................................................................... iv 
1 Background ....................................................................................................................................................... 5 
ECDC and its collaboration to continuous professional development .............................................................. 5 
ASPHER ................................................................................................................................................... 5 
2 Methodology ..................................................................................................................................................... 6 
Study population ...................................................................................................................................... 6 
Data collection .......................................................................................................................................... 6 
Dimensions .............................................................................................................................................. 6 
Presentation of results............................................................................................................................... 7 
3 Results ............................................................................................................................................................. 8 
General features ....................................................................................................................................... 8 
Catalogue: course listing overview .............................................................................................................. 9 
4 Short courses .................................................................................................................................................. 11 
Training in public health emergency preparedness and response ................................................................. 11 
Training in risk assessment ...................................................................................................................... 16 
Training in surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases: short modules in master’s programmes 17 
Training in surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases: diploma courses ................................. 21 
Training in outbreak investigation............................................................................................................. 24 
Training in laboratory support for investigation of health threats ................................................................. 28 
Training in specific communicable diseases ............................................................................................... 29 
5 Master’s/doctoral programmes in surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases ................................. 34 
Doctoral study programmes ..................................................................................................................... 34 
Master’s ................................................................................................................................................. 35 
Annex 1. Other public health training programmes in prevention and control of communicable diseases .................. 38 
Annex 2. Rationale for technical dimensions used to analyse competencies developed through courses in catalogue  40 

Tables 
Table 1: Explored dimensions for every course ................................................................................................. 7 

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Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Abbreviations 

ASPHER Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region 
EPHO 
IHR 
ECTS 
APHEA  Agency for Public Health Education Accreditation 
MSc 

Essential Public Health Operations 
International Health Regulations 
European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System 

Master’s of Science degree 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

1 Background 

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the Association of Schools of Public Health 
in the European Region (ASPHER) have agreed to collaborate in the training of public health professionals in 
competencies for prevention and control of communicable diseases. 

The collaboration between ECDC and ASPHER facilitates the connections between academia and the public 
health institutes, translating the collaboration at EU level to national level in particular in the area of serious cross 
border threats to health. The  collection of the training offer and competences by European Schools of Public 
Health is essential and therefore complements the ECDC training offer. 

The aim of the present catalogue is to map the strengths of the schools and academic departments of public 
health members of ASPHER regarding their resources and competencies in the area of communicable disease 
prevention and control, and their current offer of training activities in that area of knowledge. 

This catalogue has been drafted by the ECDC in accordance with article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 851/2004 of 
the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 20014 establishing a European centre for disease 
prevention and control. ECDC issued the catalogue on its own initiative according to article 7(1) of Regulation 
(EC) No 851/2004 and in collaboration with ASPHER in accordance with the Collaboration agreement signed on 
21 March 2016.  

The content of the catalogue is a collection of information provided directly by the schools and academic 
departments of Public Health members of ASPHER and is not intended to reflect ECDC views on the quality of the 
courses listed. ECDC accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoever (including but not limited to any direct or 
consequential loss or damage that may occur) arising out of or in connection with the information shared in this 
catalogue. In addition, content may be linked to external sites over which ECDC has no control and for which it 
assumes no responsibility. 

ECDC and its collaboration to continuous professional 
development 
ECDC is the official European Union (EU) agency with a mission to identify, assess and communicate current and 
emerging threats to human health posed by infectious diseases. 

Article 9.6 of the ECDC founding Regulation (851/2004) states, ‘The Centre shall, as appropriate, support and 
coordinate training programmes in order to assist Member States and the Commission to have sufficient numbers 
of trained specialists, in particular in epidemiological surveillance and field investigations, and to have a capability 
to define health measures to control disease outbreaks. This is in agreement with Decision 1082/2013/EU on 
serious cross-border threats to health, which calls for consultations aimed at 'supporting the implementation of 
core capacity requirements for surveillance and response’. ECDC is committed to continue strengthening its 
training networks in order to find synergies between the various training providers in the field across Europe and 
facilitate the broad incorporation of the defined EU core competencies for disease prevention and control into the 
formal activities of training partners across Europe, including schools of public health and universities. 

ASPHER 
ASPHER is the key independent European organisation dedicated to strengthening the role of public health by 
improving education and training of public health professionals for both practice and research. It promotes 
activities which foster exchange of information and best practices amongst its members in an effort to achieve 
high standards of public health education and training across Europe. 

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Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

2 Methodology 

The technical scope of this collaborative project includes the analysis of training activities and competency 
domains developed by these courses among the ASPHER European Schools of Public Health for the following 
areas: public health emergency preparedness and response, public health surveillance, communication, risk 
assessment, outbreak investigation, laboratory support for investigation of health threats, research methodology 
applied to public health and training methods and leadership. 

Study population 

Training programmes in communicable disease prevention and 
control in schools and academic departments of public health 
(ASPHER members) 

Inclusion criteria were defined as: 

• 
• 

programme at a public health school or academic department member of ASPHER; and 
postgraduate, bachelor and/or master’s programme in communicable disease prevention and control. 

Data collection 
An online semi-structured questionnaire using the EU survey tool2. It was designed using a similar model to that 
used in ’Education and Training Initiatives for Crisis Management in the European Union: A Web-based Analysis 
of Available Programs’ (2014)3. The questionnaire was piloted in five public health schools for feedback and to 
make any necessary amendments. 

Once the questionnaire was revised and updated after the pilot phase, it was sent to all member schools of 
ASPHER, which defines itself as ‘the key independent European organisation dedicated to strengthening the role 
of public health by improving the education and training of public health professionals’. 

Dimensions 
The objective was to compile a catalogue of the participating schools and each postgraduate, bachelor and/or 
master’s programme in the area of prevention and control of communicable diseases. All the explored dimensions 
are presented in the Table 1 below. Among those, the technical dimensions for the classification of courses were 
competencies related to: 

• 

• 
• 

the functions of prevention and control of communicable diseases (also under Essential Public Health 
Operations – EPHO – 1 and 2) 
specific communicable diseases; and 
transversal areas. 

2 EUSurvey: http://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/home/welcome. 
3 Ingrassia PL, Foletti M, Djalali A, Scarone P, Ragazzoni L, Corte FD et al. Education and training initiatives for crisis 
management in the European Union: a web-based analysis of available programs. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2014 Apr;29(2):115-
26. 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

The competency domains originate from the following technical documents: 

• 

• 
• 
• 

Core competencies for public health epidemiologists working in the area of communicable disease 
surveillance and response, in the European Union4. 
European action plan for strengthening public health capacities and services5. 
From potential to action public health core competences for essential public health operations6. 
Core competencies for inter professional collaborative practice: Report of an expert panel 7. 

Table 1: Explored dimensions for every course 

Dimensions 

ASPHER member information 
Name of public health school 
Country 
Technical domains covered in the course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 
Transversal 
Other core disciplines in relation to communicable disease prevention and control 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 
Education and training method 
Duration 
Does training include research project? 
Language 
Accreditation 
Entity that accredits course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding or fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Website and contact information 
Course website 
Email 

Presentation of results 
The result of the collection of the training activities is presented in a separate table for each of the training 
programmes. The results presented here reflect the training offers of the responding schools and are based on 
the data provided by the schools. 

4 European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Core competencies for public health epidemiologists working in the area 
of communicable disease surveillance and response, in the European Union. Stockholm: ECDC; 2008. Available from: 
http://ecdc.europa.eu/sites/portal/files/media/en/publications/Publications/training-core-competencies-EU-public-health-
epidemiologists.pdf. 
5 World Health Organization. European Action Plan for Strengthening Public Health Capacities and Services. Copenhagen: WHO 
Regional Office for Europe 2012. Available from: http://euro.who.int/en/health-topics/health-systems/public-health-
services/publications/2012/european-action-plan-for-strengthening-public-health-capacities-and-services. 
6 Foldspang A, The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region. From Potential to Action. Public Health Core 
Competences for Essential Public Health Operations – A Manual. Volume 3: Tables of competences by EPHOs. Available from: 
http://www.aspher.org/download/138/booklet-competencesephos-volume-3.pdf. 
7 Interprofessional Education Collaborative Expert Panel. Core competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice: Report 
of an expert panel. Washington, D.C.: Interprofessional Education Collaborative. 2011. Available from: 
http://members.aamc.org/eweb/upload/Core%20Competencies%20for%20Interprofessional%20Collaborative%20Practice_Rev
ised.pdf. 

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Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

3 Results 

The results are presented in two parts. The first part is a brief overview of the answers received from the survey 
and the second is a more detailed table for every course. The courses were classified taking into account the 
main topic, however they can cover several topics. The courses are presented in the following sections: 

• 
• 
• 

• 
• 

public health emergency preparedness and response 
risk assessment 
surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases 
− 
− 
− 
− 
outbreak investigation 
laboratory support for investigation of health threats 

doctoral study programme 
master’s 
diploma course 
brief courses 

General features 
This catalogue includes a collection of the current offer of training activities in the area of communicable disease 
prevention and control. 

Twenty-eight of the 31 participating public health schools from 22 countries have training activities in the area of 
communicable disease prevention and control. This review identified a total of 49 training initiatives in the area 
of prevention and control of communicable diseases. 

Thirteen percent of the identified training initiatives were offered in schools located in Spain, 11% in the 
Netherlands and 9% in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Portugal and United Kingdom. The remaining 4% were 
distributed among 13 ASPHER member states, while no training was available in 3 public health schools of 
different countries. 

Among the communicable disease prevention and control functions (EPHO 1 and 2), the domains most 
commonly covered were: Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response (77%), Surveillance (72%) and 
Risk Assessment and Outbreak Investigation (64%). Regarding the transversal area, the domains most 
commonly covered were multidisciplinary Collaboration and Communication (in 78% of the courses). Regarding 
the Specific Communicable Diseases, the domains most commonly covered were vaccines, preventable diseases 
and emerging and vector-borne infections, with 80% and 71% of the courses including each of these topics 
respectively. 

On-site education was the most common delivery method for the training courses (95%). Both blended learning 
and distance electronic learning (e-learning) were also frequent (41% and 15% respectively). 

Programmes usually employed their host country language (Bulgarian, Swedish, etc.) as the official language of 
the initiative. However, English was the most common language used (53%), followed by Spanish (15%), 
Bulgarian (10%), Dutch (10%) and Czech (10%). 

In 33% of the courses, applicants were required to have specific technical education or training, while 20% 
required having previous field experience and 13% other prerequisites. 

Seventy-seven percent of courses/programmes were accredited. The study revealed that 73% of the training 
courses used the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) as the academic credit system, 
while only 9% used the Agency for Public Health Education Accreditation (APHEA) accreditation system. 

It should be noted that this catalogue includes only training courses from schools that voluntarily answered the 
questionnaire on resources and competencies in communicable disease prevention and control and that they 
cannot be considered neither exhaustive nor representative of all academic institutions of public health. 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Catalogue: course listing overview 
The tables below present the different training programmes who responded to the survey. They are classified in 
3 groups: short courses, master/doctoral programmes and other courses dealing with communicable diseases but 
not specific to the theme. The courses were classified taking into account their main topic, however they can 
cover several topics. 

Short courses 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 

Research methodology in clinical sciences 
Medical Law 
Safety and risk management in healthcare 
Public health alerts and emergency response 
Global challenges in infectious diseases 
Disasters and emergency preparedness 
(course in public health programme) 
Communicable disease control (Master’s of Public Health) 

Medical University in Warsaw 

Spanish National School of Public Health 
Swedish Red Cross University College 

Swedish Red Cross University College 

Poland 

Spain 
Sweden 

Sweden 

University of Sheffield 

United Kingdom 

Risk communication part I and part II 

Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health 

The Netherlands 

Risk assessment 

Surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases 

Master’s programmes 
Infectious disease epidemiology 
Master’s in Public Health 
Epidemiology of communicable 
diseases 
Control of communicable diseases 
Master’s in Public Health 
Prevention of communicable diseases 
Master’s in Health Education 
Diploma programme 
IDEA – Course international 
d’épidémiologie appliquée 
New knowledge in epidemiology of 
infectious diseases 
Epidemiology of infectious diseases 

School of Public Health, Physiotherapy & Sports Science, University 
College Dublin 

Ireland 

Al Quds University School of Public Health 

Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto 

Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto 

Palestine 8 

Portugal 

Portugal 

École des Hautes Etudes en Santé Publique 

France 

Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University, Bratislava 

Slovakia 

Dokuz Eylul University Medical School Department of Public Health 

Turkey 

Epidemic outbreak investigation 
Science of eradication 
Outbreak investigation, epidemiological aspects 
Outbreak management 

Spanish National School of Public Health 
Swiss School of Public Health 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health 

Spain 
Switzerland 
The Netherlands 
The Netherlands 

Outbreak investigation 

Molecular diagnostics of tropical diseases 

Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 
Spanish National School of Public Health 

Spain 

WHO Collaborative Center for HIV 
Strategic Information – several courses 
Control of communicable disease, 
epidemiology of infection; HIV 
Course in tuberculosis control consultancy 
Tuberculosis 
School of vaccinology for general 
practitioner in residential programme 
Epidemiological aspects of immunisation 
programmes 

Specific communicable diseases 

University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Andrija Stampar 
School of Public Health 

Croatia 

Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine 

Israel 

Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine 
Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto 
Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University, 
Bratislava 

Spanish National School of Public Health 

Israel 
Portugal 

Slovakia 

Spain 

8 This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual 
positions of the Member States on this issue. 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                                    
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Master’s/doctoral programmes in surveillance and epidemiology of 
communicable disease 

Surveillance and epidemiology of communicable diseases 

Master’s 
MSc Infectious Diseases 
MSc Infection Biology 
MSc Control of Infectious Diseases 
Doctoral study programme 
Dutch training programme for medical 
doctors in infectious disease control 

Department of Health Sciences, European University Cyprus 
Swiss School of Public Health 
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine 

Cyprus 
Switzerland 
United Kingdom 

Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health 

The Netherlands 

Other public health training programmes with content in the area of 
prevention and control of communicable diseases 

Public health training courses with content on communicable diseases prevention and control are presented in 
Annex 1. This is not an exhaustive list. Other training providers may have similar curricula. However, the list 
includes only those who responded to the survey. 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

4 Short courses 

Training in public health emergency preparedness and 
response 
Research methodology in clinical sciences/Medical law/Safety and risk management in healthcare 
Medical University in Warsaw, Poland 
In this course, students will be train in the research methodology in clinical sciences, medical law, safety and risk 
management in healthcare. It is taught in Polish and is worth 3 credits. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also 
under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Target audience 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 

Course website 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Communication 
Pedagogy 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Master’s degree 
Postgraduate diploma 
Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Blended 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Problem-based leadership 
Yes 
Polish 
Yes 
ECTS 
3 
Multidisciplinary 
No 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
http://www.ckp.wum.edu.pl 
http://ckp.wum.edu.pl/studia-podyplomowe 

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Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Public health alerts and emergency response 
Spanish National School of Public Health, Spain 
This course provides an overall description of the Spanish, European and global systems of preparedness and response, 
introducing the concept of epidemic intelligence, its scope and reach. From a rigorous public health risk assessment, we 
analyse the conditions and components for an effective and coordinated response to health alerts and emergences. The 
main contents of the course are: public health alerts, emergences, and crisis, public health risk assessment, transmissible 
disease-associated risks, International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), the European Early Warning and Response System 
and Decision 1082/2013/EU on serious cross-border threats to health and the Spanish system of early alert and rapid 
response. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention 
and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 

Food-borne diseases 
Respiratory infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
25 hours 
No 
Spanish 
No 
ECTS 
1 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants  No 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Less than EUR 500 
http://sigade.isciii.es/publico/actual/VerCurso.asp?ID=4&CodProp=2931&CodEd=3029 
fsimon@msssi.es 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Global challenges in infectious diseases 
Swedish Red Cross University College, Sweden 
Global challenges in infectious diseases is a five-week course (i.e. 7.5 ECTS credits) that gives students deeper knowledge 
in global health situation in the context of nursing. It covers areas such as prevention, nursing care activities and medical 
treatment of global infectious diseases. Global health organisations and their work with surveillance and interventions are 
studied. Students gain knowledge about pathophysiology, microbiology and immunology in order to be able to assess and 
explain global infectious diseases and suggest medical measures and nursing care activities. Intercultural communication 
and human rights are studied. Ethical dilemmas in relation to the subject are identified and reflected upon. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Global infectious diseases 
Communication 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable disease 
prevention and control 
Course characteristics 

Human rights and international law 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course website 
Email 

Module certificate 
Master’s 
On-site 
E-learning 
Blended 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
200 hours 
No 
Swedish 
Yes 
ECTS 
7.5 
Bachelor’s in Nursing 
Nurses 
11–25 
Course included in regular programme funded by government 
http://www.rkh.se 
schm@rkh.se 

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Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Disasters and emergency preparedness – course in public health programme 
Swedish Red Cross University College, Sweden 
Disaster and emergency preparedness is a five-week course (i.e. 7.5 ECTS) that introduces students to the meaning and 
implications of disasters and emergency preparedness. It covers areas such as humanitarian consequences of disasters, 
epidemics, acts of war and other types of catastrophes. Policy documents, migration, humanitarian rights and the activities 
of humanitarian organisations, including the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, are studied. Students learn about 
responses, including psychological first aid and the principles of prioritisation and care in disasters and emergencies. 
Intersections between public health ethics, human rights and health are examined. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
risk assessment 
No 
Communication 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable 
disease prevention and control 
Course characteristics 

Humanitarian organisations and their role 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 

Funding/fellowship for participants 

Course fee excluding travel cost 
Email 

Module certificate 
Bachelor of Science 
On-site 
E-learning 
Blended 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Problem-based leadership 
200 hours 
No 
English 
Yes 
Government 
ECTS 
7.5 
Previous academic courses in the programme 
Multidisciplinary 
11–25 
Course included in new programme for autumn 2018 and 
working with funding for students coming from outside EU. 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
schm@rkh.se 

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ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Communicable disease control (MPH) 
University of Sheffield, United Kingdom 
The Master of Public Health programme has 2 courses: communicable disease control and disaster and emergency 
management. 
The communicable disease control module covers the core principles of infectious disease surveillance, outbreak 
investigation and management, immunisation, as well as various key topics including antimicrobial resistance, healthcare 
associated infections, blood-borne infections, respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. The course is predominantly 
delivered by communicable disease control practitioners and infectious disease specialists here in the UK. It also covers 
tropical diseases, tuberculosis, and environmental health in developing countries. 
The Disaster and emergency management module covers the principles of hazard analysis, emergency 
planning/preparedness, business continuity management, emergency response and recovery. In addition, we have key 
topics on emergency needs assessment, monitoring & evaluation, logistics in disasters, community engagement, water and 
sanitation, and nutrition emergencies. The module covers material relevant to both practitioners in high-income country 
settings but also for those preparing to work in humanitarian settings in low-/middle-income countries. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Other specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable 
disease prevention and control 
Course characteristics 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Tropical diseases, environmental hazards 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 

Epidemiology, disaster & emergency management 

Master 
Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
E-learning 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
120 hours 
No 
English 
Yes 
APHEA 
APHEA 
Multidisciplinary 
51–100 
No 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/scharr/prospective_students/masters/mph 
andrew.lee@shef.ac.uk 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Training in risk assessment 
Risk communication part I and part II 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health, The Netherlands 
In this course, students will be train in the communication of risks, preparation and response to public health emergencies. 
It is taught in Dutch and the duration is 24 hours. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 
Transversal 
Other core disciplines in relation to communicable disease 
prevention and control 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 

No 
Communication 

Risk communication 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditor 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 

Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Other: media training 

24 hours 
No 
Dutch 
Yes 
Governmental 
Experience in public health 
Multidisciplinary 
11–25 
No 
EUR 500 to 1 500 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Training in surveillance and epidemiology of communicable 
diseases: short modules in master’s programmes 
Infectious disease epidemiology in MPH programme 
School of Public Health, Physiotherapy & Sports Science, University College Dublin, Ireland 
In this module, students learn the epidemiology of important infectious diseases, including vaccine-preventable disease. 
national and international infectious disease surveillance systems and the requirements of countries under IHR are 
addressed. Blood-borne viruses, healthcare-associated infections, antibiotic resistance and emerging pathogens of public 
gealth significance are examined. Students acquire in-depth knowledge of epidemiological principles relevant to infectious 
diseases. They learn how to investigate and manage an infectious disease outbreak and how to interpret surveillance data. 
They can describe, implement, monitor and evaluate control measures against infectious diseases. They understand 
important aspects of antibiotic resistance development and prevention. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 
Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 

Module certificate 
Master 
On-site over 12 weeks (2 hours per week) 
Lecture (face-to-face) 
Tutorials 
100 hours 
Assignment requiring literature search 
English 
Yes 
ECTS 
5 
Multidisciplinary 
26–50 
No 
EUR 90 per credit – total EUR 450 
http://www.ucd.ie/phpss/study/graduateprogrammes/publichealth 
patricia.fitzpatrick@ucd.ie 

17 

 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Epidemiology of communicable diseases in MPH programme 
Al Quds University School of Public Health, Palestine 
The course considers the public health consequences of different communicable diseases of importance for the Palestinian 
population; it includes some important diseases, case studies and articles to cover important epidemiological aspects. The 
focus is on two major components in Epidemiology of communicable diseases. The first is general knowledge about 
components of the epidemiological triangle and the cycle of the disease transmission. The second component is dealing with 
specific public health issues of importance for the epidemiology and control/prevention of communicable diseases. 
The course examines strategies for surveillance, outbreak investigation and prevention (including immunisation) and 
potentiality of spreading of infectious diseases in different settings. The major epidemiological methods for investigating and 
assessing strategies for surveillance should be explained, to identify groups at risk and preventive measures for each of 
these diseases. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and 
control functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 
Vaccineppreventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Master 
Postgraduate diploma 
Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
E-learning 
Blended 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
Thesis 
37 hours 
Yes 
English 
Yes 
Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education 
Unified Palestinian system for master programmes in Palestine. Built on 
semester-credited hours similar to American credit system of credit. 
Field experience 
Multidisciplinary 
Must have a scientific background either in science or health and at least 
two years of experience in field. 
11–25 
No 
More than EUR 1 500 
http://www.alquds.edu/en/faculty-of-public-health/mph-in-public-health-
program.html 
nsharif@staff.alquds.edu 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 

Prerequisites 
Target audience 

Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 

Email 

18 

 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Control of communicable diseases in MPH programme 
Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto, Portugal 
This course provides a broad understanding of infectious diseases and has particular relevance to in-service health 
professionals. Strategies for prevention and control of infectious diseases are discussed, allowing the students to acquire 
new knowledge and update their current expertise. The course aims to address the challenges of infectious diseases in the 
21st Century, namely those representing public health threats and to present the specificities on infectious diseases impact 
evaluation, surveillance, preparedness and response. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditor 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and 
response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 

Master’s 
Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion  
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
27 hours 
No 
English 
Yes 
Government (A3ES) 
ECTS 
3 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 
No 
Less than EUR 500 
http://ispup.up.pt/academics/msc-programmes 
lsilva@med.up.pt 

19 

 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Prevention of communicable diseases – Master’s in Health Education 
Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto, Portugal 
The objective of this course is to promote knowledge on specific aspects of the population dynamics of infectious diseases, 
integrating basic science and clinical aspects with epidemiology and public health, particularly discussing the control 
strategies and mechanisms of transmission. The main contents of the course are the infectious diseases epidemiology 
specificities and definitions, the distribution of communicable diseases, their determinants, transmission, prevention and 
control, the history and epidemiology of HIV /AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Topics are presented taking 
into account the heterogeneity of backgrounds among the participants. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and 
control functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Surveillance 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 

Target audience 

Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Pedagogy 

Master’s 
Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
36 hours 
No 
Portuguese 
Yes 
Government (A3ES) 
ECTS 
4 
Specific technical education or training 
Multidisciplinary: teachers, social workers, community health workers, 
nurses 
11–25 
No 
Less than EUR 500 
http://ispup.up.pt/academics/msc-programmes 
lsilva@med.up.pt 

20 

 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Training in surveillance and epidemiology of communicable 
diseases: diploma courses 
IDEA – Cours International d’ Épidémiologie Appliquée 
École des Hautes Études en Santé Publique (EHESP), France 
Organised in partnership with the National Public Health Agency (ANSP), École Pasteur Cnam, the army service and the 
association EPITER, EHESP course IDEA allows public health professionals to appropriate the intervention epidemiology 
methods for use in their daily practice. 
This training, which has been taught for more than 30 years, is recognised as a continuing professional development 
programme accredited by the National Agency for Continuing Professional Development. 
The objectives are mastering basic principles in statistics, descriptive and analytical epidemiology, implementing adapted 
methods for the treatment of health signals, investigating epidemics, epidemiological surveillance; conducting public health 
surveys and adequately communicating epidemiological information. 
The training is for public health professionals, including doctors, veterinarians, pharmacists, sanitary engineer and nurses, 
whose activity is oriented towards the practice of epidemiology. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditor 
Academic credit system 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Respiratory infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
120 hours 
No 
French 
Yes 
Agence nationale du Développement Professionnel Continu 
Other 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
26–50 
Yes 
More than EUR 1 500 
http://idea.ehesp.fr 
candidaturefc@ehesp.fr 

21 

 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

New knowledge in epidemiology of infectious diseases 
Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University, Bratislava, Slovakia 
Current issues in epidemiology of infectious diseases 
The course provides new insights into current infectious diseases issues and threats such as measles in the EU, hepatitis A, 
Zika virus, Ebola virus disease and avian flu and is annually updated. The target group is epidemiologists working at public 
health authorities. Slovakia's preparedness for such threats is also discussed. 
Outbreak management 
The course provides examples of outbreaks investigated by epidemiological studies (cohort and case-control). The target 
group is epidemiologists working at public health authorities responsible for outbreak investigation. The aim is wide 
implementation of intervention epidemiology in praxis. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 

Academic credit system 

Prerequisites 

Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
28 hours 
No 
Slovak 
No 
European Union of Medical Specialists (EUMS)/European Accreditation 
Council for Continuing Medical Education (EACCME) 
Field experience: work experience at public health authority or as 
infection control and hospital hygiene professionals 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 
No 
Less than EUR 500 
http://www.szu.sk/userfiles/file/Plan_aktivit/2017/TP-2017-FVZ.pdf 
michal.adamisin@szu.sk 

22 

 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Epidemiology of infectious diseases 
Dokuz Eylul University Medical School Department of Public Health, Turkey 
This is a 2-credit course for the Master’s of Public Health programme. Public health residency students (MDs) also take this 
course. The epidemiology of water and food-borne diseases, vaccine-preventable diseases, certain diseases which Turkey 
has vertical control programmes, such as malaria, Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, outbreak investigation, epidemiologic 
measures and indicators for infectious diseases are covered in this course. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 

Specific communicable diseases 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable disease 
prevention and control 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Training includes research project 
Language 
Course/programme accredited 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 

Epidemiology 

Postgraduate diploma 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
No 
Turkish 
No 
Specific for health professionals 
<10 
No 

23 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Training in outbreak investigation 
Epidemic outbreak investigation 
Spanish National School of Public Health, Spain 
The main objective of the course is to enable students to identify, describe, asses and control communicable disease 
outbreaks, as well as to communicate the risks associated with those outbreaks. An outbreak can become a public health 
emergency, with potential risk for the health of the population demanding rapid and effective response, based on good 
quality research. We need exhaustive information regarding people affected, place and time, as well as socioeconomic and 
physical environments where the cases occur. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention 
and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 

Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Problem-based leadership 
40 hours 
No 
Spanish 
No 
ECTS 
2 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants  No 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Less than EUR 500 
http://sigade.isciii.es/publico/actual/VerCurso.asp?ID=4&CodProp=2904&CodEd=3002 
juan_donado_campos@hotmail.com 

24 

 
 
 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Science of eradication 
Swiss School of Public Health, Switzerland 
Participants of the science of eradication: malaria leadership development course gain knowledge and skills to develop and 
direct malaria control, elimination, and eradication programmes through an understanding of a broad range of topics, 
including lessons learned from past eradication efforts, challenges in malaria biology and epidemiology, gaps and 
opportunities in vector control strategies, drug and vaccine strategies, and surveillance techniques. The 2017 edition of the 
Science of Eradication: the malaria leadership development course was hosted by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health 
Institute. The course provided individuals working in broad areas of malaria with a multidisciplinary perspective of disease 
eradication. 
Faculty from the three partner institutions, as well as malaria experts from around the world, shared their expertise on a 
range of malaria topics including: Past disease eradication efforts; Malaria biology and epidemiology; vector and parasite 
biology; Application of vector control, drug, and vaccine strategies; economic and financial tools and strategies; impact of 
social and political factors; Surveillance techniques; and Modelling to evaluate the effectiveness of eradication strategies. 
This course is accredited (2 tropEd ECTS credits) by the University of Barcelona. 
Technical domains covered in the course 

Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 

Prerequisites 

Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Laboratory support for investigation of health 
threats 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
60 hours 
No 
English 
Yes 
tropEd 
ECTS 
2 
Field experience; specific technical education or 
training 
Multidisciplinary 
26–50 
Yes 
Free 
http://www.scienceoferadication.org 
nuria.casamilijona@isglobal.org 

25 

 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Outbreak investigation, epidemiological aspects 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health, The Netherlands 
The course is on the epidemiological aspects of outbreak investigation. The course accreditors are governmental and 
APHEA. It is taught in English and certain parts are in Dutch. 
Technical domains covered in the course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 
Transversal 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 

No 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Outbreak investigation 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Blended 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
30 hours 
No 
English 
Elements in English and Dutch 
Yes 
Government/APHEA 
APHEA 
Specific for health professionals (doctors, nurses in centres for 
disease control, epidemiologists in public health) 
11–25 
No 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
http://www.nspoh.nl 
c.deruiter@nspoh.nl 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 

Language 

Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 

Target audience 

Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

26 

 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Outbreak management 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health, The Netherlands 
The course on outbreak management deals with issues related to public health emergency preparedness and response, risk 
assessment, vaccine-preventable diseases, food-borne diseases, respiratory infections, emerging and vector-borne 
infections and outbreak management. The course accreditors are professional bodies and APHEA. It is taught in Dutch and 
the duration is 24 hours. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable 
disease prevention and control 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Foodborne diseases 
Respiratory infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Leadership 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Outbreak management 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion  
Role play 
Case study 
24 hours 
No 
Dutch 
Yes 
Professional accreditation body/APHEA 
APHEA 
Specific technical education or training (experience in public health) 
Multidisciplinary 
11–25 
No 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
http://www.nspoh.nl 
c.deruiter@nspoh.nl 

27 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Training in laboratory support for investigation of health 
threats 
Molecular diagnostic of tropical diseases 
Spanish National School of Public Health, Spain 
This course provides health and biologic sciences students with knowledge and skills about management and laboratory 
diagnostic of tropical diseases. The main objectives of the course are to become familiar with the more prevalent tropical 
diseases, provide basic information about biology, epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment for a wide range of tropical 
diseases, as well as practical laboratory skills for the differential diagnosis of them. 
Technical domains covered in the course 
Communicable disease prevention 
and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 

Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
80 hours 
No 
Spanish 
No 
ECTS 
4 
Field experience; specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants  No 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Less than EUR 500 
http://sigade.isciii.es/publico/actual/VerCurso.asp?ID=4&CodProp=2818&CodEd=2916 
erodrgez@isciii.es 

28 

 
 
 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Training in specific communicable diseases 
WHO Collaborating Centre for HIV Strategic Information – several courses 
University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Andrija Stampar School of Public Health, Croatia 
Many training workshops are organised within the centre. Those presented in detail are the ones offered in 2018. For the 
previous ones, the title of the workshop is presented. 
• 

Training workshop on using HIV care and treatment cascades to improve 90-90-90 targets, March 2018, Dubrovnik, 
Croatia 

The main course objective was to enhance the skills of participants in analysis and use of the HIV ‘care cascade’ that is used 
to determine the magnitude of losses and gaps along the continuum of HIV care and explore reasons for these losses. The 
HIV care cascade is a way to show the proportion of individuals living with HIV who are engaged at each stage of HIV care, 
typically illustrated by a cascading bar chart. Cascades consist of a series of events in which each event is contingent on 
having achieved the preceding event until the final outcome is reached. The HIV care cascade enables to monitor the 
progress against 90-90-90 targets that the international community set towards achieving the Sustainable Development 
Goals and ending AIDS. 
• 

Training workshop on getting to zero: PrEP, treatment for all and differentiated care to reduce incidence and mortality, 
June 2018, Zagreb, Croatia 

This training workshop described the major role that pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV acquisition and 
treatment as prevention have in reducing HIV incidence and mortality and bringing the epidemic under control. As of 
September 2015, WHO recommends that people at substantial risk of HIV infection should be offered PrEP as an additional 
prevention choice, as part of comprehensive prevention strategies. Lectures outlined steps that are necessary for the 
implementation of PreP programmes. The course also focussed on the HIV treatment as prevention strategy and 
participants learned about various differentiated ART delivery models and monitoring and evaluation approaches. 
• 

Training workshop on improving HIV programmes through the use of cohort data: ART cohort data analysis, March 
2015, Croatia 
Training workshop on HIV prevention and treatment cascade analysis, June 2015, Zagreb, Croatia 
Training workshop on data analysis and population size estimations using RDS analyst (RDS-A), October 2015, Zagreb, 
Croatia 
Training workshop on HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care for key populations and programme evaluation, 
March 2016, Zagreb, Croatia 

• 
• 

• 

•  Workshop on population size estimations in key populations: methods and lessons learned around the world, 30 May–2 

• 

June 2016, Zagreb, Croatia 
Training workshop in design and implementation of respondent-driven sampling (RDS) and RDS data analysis, October 
2016, Zagreb, Croatia 

•  Workshop in HIV case-based surveillance and patient monitoring March 2017, Zagreb, Croatia 
• 
• 

Training workshop on HIV interventions for key populations and programme evaluation, June 2017, Zagreb, Croatia 
Training workshop on HIV data quality improvement, programme quality improvement and data use, October 2017, 
Zagreb, Croatia 

Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also 
under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Mentoring 
Leadership 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
No 
English 
Yes 
WHO 
Multidisciplinary 
11–25 
EUR 500 to 1 500 
http://www.whohub-zagreb.org/trainings 
training@snz.hr 

29 

 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Control of communicable disease, epidemiology of infection; HIV 
Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Israel 
In this course, students will be trained in the Control of Communicable Disease, Epidemiology of Infection; HIV. The course 
accreditors are APHEA Institutional accreditation. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also 
under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 

Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Doctorate/Master’s 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
42 hours 
Yes 
English 
Yes 
APHEA 
APHEA 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 
Yes 

Course in tuberculosis control consultancy 
Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Israel 
In this course, students will be trained in tuberculosis control consultancy. This course deals with issues related to public 
health emergency preparedness and response, risk assessment and tuberculosis. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also 
under EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Tuberculosis 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
39 hours 
English 
No 
Multidisciplinary 
<10 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate  
Delivery mode  

Education and training method 

Duration 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Target audience 
Number of participants 

30 

 
 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Tuberculosis 
Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto, Portugal 
This course promotes the application of tuberculosis epidemiology in clinical practice and raises awareness about the 
appropriate use and interpretation of diagnostic tools in the study of a patient with suspected tuberculosis, the use of 
available drugs for the treatment of tuberculosis, and also addresses the impact of adverse effects and co-morbidities. The 
principles in multidrug-resistant tuberculosis approach, how to track populations at-risk, how to study a tuberculosis 
outbreak and the dynamics of tuberculosis transmission in a community will be presented and discussed. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions (also 
under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 
Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 
Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 
Tuberculosis 
Communication 
Leadership 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
28 hours 
No 
Portuguese 
No 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
51–100 
Less than EUR 500 
http://ispup.up.pt/academics/short-courses/next/525 
secretaria@ispup.up.pt 

31 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

School of vaccinology for general practitioner 

School of vaccinology for general paediatricians 

School of vaccinology for general practitioner (GP) in residential programme 
Faculty of Public Health, Slovak Medical University, Bratislava, Slovak Republic 
• 
The aim of the course is to increase the knowledge of GPs in the field of vaccinology and subsequently to increase the 
vaccination coverage of the adult population. Vaccination of adults is a part of continuous work engagement and healthy 
aging. Since GPs for adults do not have sufficient knowledge about vaccination, they are under the pressure of anti-vax 
patients and parents. The target group is medical doctors in residential programmes preparing for GP specialisation. The 
main content of the course is immunisation and the basics of vaccine immunology, types and composition of vaccines, types 
of vaccination and its reimbursement, vaccines storage and administration, contraindications and safety of vaccination, 
management of vaccination in the GP praxis and compulsory vaccination of children and adult vaccination against individual 
diseases. 
• 
The aim of the course is to increase the knowledge of general paediatricians in the field of vaccinology and subsequently to 
maintain high vaccination coverage of compulsory vaccinated diseases and increase vaccination coverage of recommended 
vaccination. Paediatricians are under the pressure of anti-vax parents. The target group is medical doctors preparing for 
paediatric specialisation. The main content of the course is immunisation and the basics of vaccine immunology, types and 
composition of vaccines. types of vaccination and its reimbursement, vaccine storage and administration, contraindications 
and safety of vaccination, management of vaccination in the paediatric praxis, compulsory vaccination of children and 
recommended vaccination against individual diseases. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Specific communicable diseases 
Transversal 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Communication 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
Interactive via http://www.sli.do 
16 hours 
No 
Slovak 
No 
EUMS/EACCME 
Specific for health professionals 
GP for adults 
51–100 participants 
No 
Less than EUR 500 
kristufkova@gmail.com 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 

Target audience 

Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Email 

32 

 
 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Epidemiological aspects of immunisation programmes 
Spanish National School of Public Health, Spain 
After attending the course the participant should be familiar and able to describe the immunisation policy in Spain, the 
natural history of vaccine preventable diseases and the implications of introducing a vaccination programmes, the 
parameters involved in the dynamics of the vaccine preventable diseases, the characteristics of the different types of 
vaccines and their mechanisms of action, the process of authorisation and marketing of vaccines, the surveillance of 
immunisation coverage, different methods for estimating the efficacy/effectiveness of vaccines, the evaluation of vaccines 
safety and to have some understanding on mathematical models and their application to design vaccination strategies. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention 
and control functions (also under 
EPHO 1 and 2) 
Specific communicable diseases 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Surveillance 

Vaccine-preventable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 
Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants  No 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Communication 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Postgraduate certificate 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
25 hours 
No 
Spanish 
No 
ECTS 
1 
Specific technical education or training 
Specific for health professionals 
11–25 

Less than EUR 500 
http://sigade.isciii.es/publico/actual/VerCurso.asp?ID=4&CodProp=2837&CodEd=2935 
alimia@msssi.es 

33 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

5 Master’s/doctoral programmes in 
surveillance and epidemiology of 
communicable diseases 

Doctoral study programmes 
Dutch training programme for medical doctors in Infectious disease control (medical specialisation, 
accredited) 
Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health, The Netherlands 
Dutch training programme for medical doctors in infectious disease control. The topics covered in this course are public 
health emergency preparedness and response, risk assessment, surveillance and outbreak investigation. The accreditors of 
the course are the government and the Netherlands School for Public and Occupational Health. It has APHEA accreditation. 
It is taught in Dutch and certain parts are in English. 
Technical domains covered in the course 

Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to 
communicable disease prevention and control 
Course characteristics 

Granted certificate 

Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
No 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Different communicable diseases, does not exclude specific ones 

Postgraduate diploma 
License to work as medical doctor in infectious disease control 
On-site 
Blended 
Learning by doing combined with on-site and blended learning 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Assignments in practice, supervised competency-based learning 

Training includes research project 

Yes 

Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Dutch, certain parts in English 
Yes 
Government/APHEA 
ECTS 
120 
Specific technical education or training (medical doctor) 
Specific for health professionals (medical doctors working in public health) 
26–50 
Yes 
More than EUR 1500 
http://www.nspoh.nl 
c.deruiter@nspoh.nl 

34 

ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Master’s 
MSc Infectious Diseases 
Department of Health Sciences, European University Cyprus, Cyprus 
The MSc in Infectious Diseases is a new programme offered by the European University Cyprus as of 2018. It has a duration 
of 18 months full-time/90 ECTS credits. It is open for enrolment till 30 September each year for any health profession 
Bachelor graduate with an English knowledge at level B2 of COE or higher and prior academic, research or professional 
interest in infectious diseases and a maximum of 30 students can enrol annually. The programme is in English with a block 
format (i.e. live courses offered in the Nicosia campus on a whole day schedule within only 3–4 days each month to 
facilitate international student participation). Each course is assessed on the basis of projects, class participation, midterm 
and final examination and there is also a compulsory research thesis of 20 000 words in the last/third semester. The 
programme covers all ECDC field epidemiology and public health microbiology (EUPHEM) competences and is also indicated 
for professionals aiming at a relevant career with ECDC or other national/global regulatory authorities. 
Technical domains covered in course 
Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Other core disciplines in relation to communicable disease 
prevention and control 
Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 
Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 
Email 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Travel-related and tropical diseases 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 
Epidemiology, biostatistics, clinical microbiology 

Master’s 
Blended (e-learning, on-site) 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
18 months 
Yes  
English 
Yes 
Government 
ECTS 
90 
Degree in health sciences, English CEF level B2 and PC skills 
Multidisciplinary 
26–50 
No 
More than EUR 1500 
http://www.euc.ac.cy 
G.Lavranos@euc.ac.cy 

35 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

MSc Infection Biology 
Swiss School of Public Health, Switzerland 
Swiss TPH offers the Master of Infection Biology for students with a special interest in basic biology and laboratory work. 
The master’s at the University of Basel starts in the autumn semester. The Master of Science in Infection Biology normally 
requires three semesters for students with a bachelor’s degree. 
Infection biology focuses on host-pathogen interactions and aims to understand the mechanisms through which viruses, 
bacteria, fungi or parasites colonise their hosts and cause disease. Infection biologists study molecular, cellular, metabolic or 
immunological aspects of pathogen biology and infection, try to elucidate mechanisms and evolution of drug resistance and 
immune evasion, or investigate dynamics of transmission and infection in the field. Knowledge gained from studying these 
and other aspects of infection biology provides the basis for the development of novel diagnostic tools, drugs and vaccines 
for improved prevention and treatment of infectious diseases. 
The MSc degree in infection biology centres mainly on laboratory based work. All courses and lab work are taught in 
English. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Mentoring 
Pedagogy 
Leadership 
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Master’s 
On-site 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
Two years 
Yes 
English 
Yes 
University of Basel 
ECTS 
120 
BSc in related field 
Specific for health professionals  
11–25 
Yes 
http://www.swisstph.ch/en/education-and-training/bachelor-
and-master/msc-in-infection-biology 
christine.mendes@swisstph.ch 

Communicable disease prevention and control functions 
(also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 
Delivery mode 

Education and training method 

Duration 
Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Academic credit system 
Number of ECTS credits 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 

Course website 

Email 

36 

 
 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

MSc Control of Infectious Diseases 
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, United Kingdom 
This course aims to bridge the disciplines of epidemiology, laboratory sciences, and public health and policy for the training 
and retraining of students who wish to work directly on a multidisciplinary, practical approach to the control of infectious 
diseases. By the end of the programme, students should be well-equipped to: investigate the transmission of endemic and 
epidemic infections; select appropriate methods of control; design, implement, and evaluate co-ordinated control methods; 
assess constraints of local public health delivery systems; manage available resources in the context of infectious disease 
control; and focus their efforts on particular geographical regions or specific diseases. 
Technical domains covered in course 

Communicable disease prevention and control 
functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 

Specific communicable diseases 

Transversal 

Course characteristics 
Granted certificate 

Delivery mode  

Education and training method 

Training includes research project 
Language 
Accredited course/programme 
Course/programme accreditors 
Prerequisites 
Target audience 
Number of participants 
Funding/fellowship for participants 
Course fee excluding travel cost 
Course website 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 
Risk assessment 
Surveillance 
Outbreak investigation 
Vaccine-preventable diseases 
Sexually transmitted diseases 
Food-borne diseases 
Tuberculosis 
Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
Respiratory infections 
Hepatitis and other blood-borne infections 
Emerging and vector-borne infections 
Communication 
Leadership  
Ethics 
Multidisciplinary collaboration 

Master’s 
On-site 
E-learning 
Lecture (face-to-face training) 
Group discussion 
Role play 
Case study 
Practical exercise (e.g. leadership exercise) 
Problem-based leadership 
Yes 
English 
Yes 
University of London 
Field experience and specific technical education or training 
Multidisciplinary 
51–100 
No 
More than EUR 1 500 
http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/study/masters/control-infectious-diseases 

37 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Annex 1. Other public health training 
programmes in prevention and control of 
communicable diseases 

These training courses are general public health training courses where there are components on training 
communicable diseases prevention and control. 

Country 

Institution 

Programme title 

Website 

Medical 
University 
Plovdiv-Faculty 
of Public Health 

Faculty of 
Public Health, 
Medical 
University of 
Pleven 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Faculty of 
Medicine & 
Dentistry, 
Palacky 
University, 
Olomouc 

Finland 

Health 
Sciences, 
Faculty of 
Social Sciences, 
University of 
Tampere, 
Finland 
(formerly, 
School of 
Health 
Sciences) 

Brief courses 
Clinical epidemiology 
for medical students 
Clinical epidemiology 
for nurses and 
midwives 
Short course 
Public health 
prevention and 
control, 
courses for bachelor’s 
degree students in 
public health, medical 
students, nurses and 
midwives 
Short course 
Epidemiology of 
infectious diseases, 
medical parasitology, 
microbiology and 
virology 
Doctoral study 
programme 
Hygiene, preventive 
medicine and 
epidemiology 
Doctoral study 
programme 
Social medicine 
Master’s degree 
programmes: General 
medicine and dentistry 
Diploma course 
postgraduate specialty 
training in public 
health (for both 
medical and non-
medical health 
professionals) 

Doctoral study 
programme 
International doctoral 
programme in 
epidemiology and 
public health 

Master’s 
•  Master’s in Public 

Germany 

HAW Hamburg 

Health 

•  Master’s in Health 

Sciences 

38 

http://www.mu-plovdiv.bg/en/faculties/faculty-of-public-
health 

http://www.mu-pleven.bg 

http://www.mu-pleven.bg 

http://old.lf.upol.cz/en/groups/studying/phd-studies 

http://old.lf.upol.cz/en/groups/studying/phd-studies 

http://old.lf.upol.cz/en/groups/studying/master-degree-
programmes 

http://www.lf.upol.cz/en 

http://www.uta.fi/ippe 

http://www.haw-hamburg.de/?id=21128 
http://www.haw-hamburg.de/fakultaeten-und-
departments/ls/studium-und-lehre/master-
studiengaenge/mhs.html 

 
ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Country 

Institution 

Programme title 

Website 

Palestine 

Poland 

Portugal 

Slovenia 

Spain 

The Netherlands 

United Kingdom 

Al Quds 
University 
School of 
Public Health 

Poznan 
University of 
Medical 
Sciences 
Instituto de 
Saúde Pública 
da 
Universidade 
do Porto 

Angela Boškin 
Faculty of 
Health Care 

Escola 
Valenciana 
d'Estudis de la 
Salut 
(Valencian 
School of 
Health Studies, 
EVES) 
Facultad de 
Ciencias de la 
Salud, 
Universidad 
Pública de 
Navarra 

Care and Public 
Health 
Research 
Institute 
(CAPHRI) 

University of 
the West of 
England, Bristol 

Faculty of 
Public Health, 
London 

Master’s 
•  Master’s in 

Epidemiology 
•  Master’s in Public 

Health 
Short course 
Health promotion and 
health education, 
Epidemiology 

Diploma course 
Specialisation course 
in public health 

Short course 
Public health and the 
basic principles of 
health promotion 

http://www.alquds.edu/en/faculty-of-public-health.html 

http://pums.ump.edu.pl 

http://ispup.up.pt/academics/specialization-course 

http://www.fzab.si/en/mainmenu-2/about-the-
faculty/introduction 

Diploma course 
Diploma in public 
health 

http://www.eves.san.gva.es/web/guest/detalle-
cursos?codigo=11700101F&idi=valencia 

Master’s 
Master’s in Public 
Health 

http://www.unavarra.es/estudios/posgrado/oferta-de-
posgrado-oficial/titulos-oficiales-de-master/escuela-
universitaria-de-estudios-sanitarios/master-universitario-
en-salud-publica 

Master’s and PhD 
•  Master’s in Global 

• 

Health 
PhD programme 
in statistics and 
epidemiology 

Master’s 
Health protection 
module within MSc in 
Public Health 
programme 

Diploma course 
Specialty training 

http://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl 

http://courses.uwe.ac.uk/BL9412/public-health 

http://www.fph.org.uk/specialty_training 

39 

 
 
 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Annex 2. Rationale for technical dimensions 
used to analyse competencies developed 
through courses in catalogue 

The technical dimensions explored were categorised in three groups of competencies. The details of these three 
groups are competences related with: 

• 
• 
• 

communicable disease prevention and control functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2) 
specific communicable diseases; and 
transversal areas 

The competency domains explored originated from the following technical documents: 

• 

• 
• 
• 

Core competencies for public health epidemiologists working in the area of communicable disease 
surveillance and response, in the European Union4. 
European action plan for strengthening public health capacities and services5. 
From potential to action Public Health Core Competences for Essential Public Health Operations6. 
Core competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice: Report of an expert panel7. 

Competences related with communicable disease 
prevention and control functions (also under EPHO 1 and 2)  

Surveillance 
These EPHO 1 (surveillance of population health and well being)5,6 and ECDC core competencies for EU public 
health epidemiologists relate to public health surveillance (domain 1.2.2)4: 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Run a surveillance system. 
Conduct surveillance data management. 
Perform descriptive analysis of surveillance data. 
Interpret disease and public health events trends from time series analysis. 
Identify key findings from surveillance data analysis and draw conclusions. 
Evaluate surveillance systems. 
Recognise the need for and set up a new surveillance system. 
Use event-based surveillance, also called epidemic intelligence, to detect health threats. 
Be familiar with laws on surveillance and reporting of communicable diseases at national, EU and global 
levels (IHR). 

Public health emergency preparedness and response 

These EPHO 2 (monitoring and response to health hazards and emergencies) and ECDC core competencies for 
EU public health epidemiologists relate to public health emergency preparedness and response 5,6: 

ability to define and describe public health disasters and emergencies that may trigger implementation of 
an emergency response plan 
development of a plan that defines organisational responsibilities, establishes communication and 
information networks and clearly outlines alert and evacuation protocols 
periodic assessment of the capacity for rapid response, including testing of the emergency plan through 
tabletop exercises and large-scale drills 
development of written epidemiological case investigation protocols for immediate investigation 
assessment of the effectiveness of past incident evaluations and identification of opportunities for 
improvement 
maintenance of written protocols to implement a programme of source and contact tracing for 
communicable diseases or toxic exposures 
maintenance of a roster of personnel with the technical expertise to respond to all natural and man-made 
emergencies 
coordination with other sectors/civil protection-coordinated approach; and 
implementation of IHR in the area of emergency planning. 

• 

• 

• 

• 
• 

• 

• 

• 
• 

40 

ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

Risk assessment 
These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to risk assessment (domain 1.2.1)4: 

• 
• 

• 

Identify sources of information about potential public health threats. 
Conduct risk assessments – verify, using critical thinking, if a public health problem exists and describe its 
magnitude. 
Identify surveillance data needs for risk assessments of public health threats. 

Outbreak investigation 

These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to outbreak investigation (domain 
1.2.3)4: 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Create a case definition and adjust it as necessary during the investigation. 
Describe the outbreak in terms of person, place and time. 
Generate hypothesis about the cause and/or risk factors of the outbreak. 
Conduct analytical epidemiological investigation to identify the source. 
Recommend appropriate evidence-based measures to control the outbreak. 
Report and present results of an investigation. 

Laboratory support for investigation of health threats 

These EPHO 2 (monitoring and response to health hazards and emergencies) and ECDC core competencies for 
EU public health epidemiologists relate to laboratory support for investigation of health threats 5,6: 

• 

• 
• 

• 
• 

• 

readily accessible laboratories capable of supporting research into public health problems, hazards and 
emergencies 
readily accessible laboratories capable of meeting routine diagnostic and surveillance needs 
ability to confirm that laboratories comply with regulations and standards through credentialing and 
licensing agencies 
ability to address the handling of laboratory samples through guidelines or protocols 
adequacy of the public health laboratory system and its capability to conduct rapid screening and high-
volume testing for routine diagnostic and surveillance needs; and 
capacity to produce timely and accurate laboratory results for diagnosis and research of public health 
threats. 

These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to laboratory issues (domain 1.2.6.): 

• 
• 
• 

Interpret the diagnostic and epidemiological significance of reports from laboratory tests. 
Be familiar with different methods for diagnosis and typing, including molecular tests. 
Communicate effectively with the laboratory team. 

Competences related with specific communicable disease 
These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to familiarity with transmission 
dynamics of infectious diseases (domain 1.2.5.) 4: 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

vaccine-preventable diseases 
sexually transmitted diseases 
food-borne diseases 
tuberculosis 
healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance 
respiratory infections 
hepatitis and other blood-borne infections; and 
emerging and vector-borne infections. 

41 

 
Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey  ECDC CORPORATE 

Competences related with transversal areas 

Communication 
These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to communication4: 

Risk communication (domain 2.3.1) 
• 

Apply basic principles of risk communication, adjusting the message when presenting results of an 
investigation to different audiences: media, general public, professionals and policymakers. 

Written communication (domain 2.3.2) 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Write a report of an epidemiological investigation for decision makers. 
Write an article for a scientific journal. 
Write an abstract. 
Write a press release. 
Produce documents, reports, letters and meeting minutes. 

Oral communication (domain 2.3.3) 
• 
• 
• 

Incorporate interpersonal skills in communication with colleagues and with the other audiences. 
Analyse and synthesise main points in a speech. 
Provide objective feedback (descriptive rather than judgemental). 

Use of new communication technologies (domain 2.3.4) 
• 

Use communication technologies (videoconference, teleconference and email). 

Mentoring 
These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to mentorship (Domain 2.5.1.)4: 

• 
• 

Mentor peers or junior epidemiologists. 
Assist others to clarify thinking, create consensus and develop ideas into actionable plans. 

Pedagogy 

For easier reporting and reference, these are the ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists 
relating to the area of training (Domain 2.5.2.)4: 

• 

Train junior epidemiologists. 

Ethics 
These ECDC core competencies for EU public health epidemiologists relate to ethics4. 

Protection of individuals (domain 2.6.1) 
• 
• 

Respect and adhere to ethical principles regarding human welfare. 
Follow ethics principles and guidelines for planning studies, conducting research, and collecting 
disseminating and using data. 
Apply relevant laws to data collection, management, dissemination and use of information. 

• 

Confidentiality (domain 2.6.2) 
• 

Respect and adhere to ethical principles regarding data protection and confidentiality regarding any 
information obtained as part of the professional activity 

Conflicts of interests (domain 2.6.3) 
• 

Handle conflicts of interests. 

Multidisciplinary collaboration 
These are the Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice: Report of an Expert Panel7. 

Values/ethics for interprofessional practice (domain 1) 
• 
• 

Place the interests of patients and populations at the centre of inter-professional healthcare delivery. 
Respect the dignity and privacy of patients while maintaining confidentiality in the delivery of team-based 
care. 
Embrace the cultural diversity and individual differences that characterise patients, populations and the 
healthcare team. 
Respect the unique cultures, values, roles/responsibilities and expertise of other health professions. 

• 

• 

42 

ECDC CORPORATE  Catalogue of courses on the prevention and control of communicable diseases – 2018 ASPHER member survey 

• 

• 

• 
• 
• 
• 

Work in cooperation with those who receive and provide care and others who contribute to or support the 
delivery of prevention and health services. 
Develop a trusting relationship with patients, families and other team members (Center for International 
Humanitarian Cooperation, 2010). 
Demonstrate high standards of ethical conduct and quality of care in contributions to team-based care. 
Manage ethical dilemmas specific to inter-professional patient/population-centred care situations. 
Act with honesty and integrity in relationships with patients, families and other team members. 
Maintain competence in one’s own profession appropriate to scope of practice. 

Roles/responsibilities for collaborative practice (domain 2) 
• 
• 
• 

Communicate one’s roles and responsibilities clearly to patients, families and other professionals. 
Recognise one’s limitations in skills, knowledge and abilities. 
Engage diverse healthcare professionals who complement one’s own professional expertise, as well as 
associated resources, to develop strategies to meet specific patient care needs. 
Explain the roles and responsibilities of other care providers and how the team works together to provide 
care. 
Use the full scope of knowledge, skills and abilities of available health professionals and healthcare 
workers to provide care that is safe, timely, efficient, effective and equitable. 
Communicate with team members to clarify each member’s responsibility in executing components of a 
treatment plan or public health intervention. 
Forge interdependent relationships with other professions to improve care and advance learning. 
Engage in continuous professional and interprofessional development to enhance team performance. 
Use unique and complementary abilities of all members of the team to optimise patient care. 

• 

• 

• 

• 
• 
• 

Interprofessional communication practices (domain 3) 
• 

Choose effective communication tools and techniques, including information systems and communication 
technologies, to facilitate discussions and interactions that enhance team function. 
Organise and communicate information with patients, families, and healthcare team members in a form 
that is understandable, avoiding discipline-specific terminology when possible. 
Express one’s knowledge and opinions to team members involved in patient care with confidence, clarity 
and respect, working to ensure common understanding of information and treatment and care decisions. 
Listen actively and encourage ideas and opinions of other team members. 
Give timely, sensitive and instructive feedback to others about their performance on the team and 
responding respectfully as a team member to feedback from others. 
Use respectful language appropriate for a given difficult situation, crucial conversation or 
inter- professional conflict. 
Recognise how one’s uniqueness, including experience level, expertise, culture, power and hierarchy 
within the healthcare team, contributes to effective communication, conflict resolution and positive 
inter- professional working relationships (University of Toronto, 2008). 
Communicate consistently the importance of teamwork in patient-centred and community-focused care. 

• 

• 

• 
• 

• 

• 

• 

Interprofessional teamwork and team-based practice (domain 4) 
• 
• 
• 

Describe the process of team development and the roles and practices of effective teams. 
Develop consensus on the ethical principles to guide all aspects of patient care and team work. 
Engage other health professionals, appropriate to the specific care situation, in shared patient- centred 
problem-solving. 
Integrate the knowledge and experience of other professions, appropriate to the specific care situation, to 
inform care decisions while respecting patient and community values and priorities/preferences for care. 
Apply leadership practices that support collaborative practice and team effectiveness. 
Engage oneself and others to constructively manage disagreements about values, roles, goals and actions 
that arise among healthcare professionals, patients and families. 
Share accountability with other professions, patients and communities for outcomes relevant to 
prevention and healthcare. 
Reflect on individual and team performance for improvement. 
Use process improvement strategies to increase the effectiveness of inter-professional teamwork and 
team-based care. 
Use available evidence to inform effective teamwork and team-based practices. 
Perform effectively on teams and in different team roles in a variety of settings. 

• 

• 
• 

• 

• 
• 

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43 

 
European Centre for Disease 
Prevention and Control (ECDC)

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