Epidemiology

Project Coordinator: Dr. Virginie Pommelet

Executive summary

IPL Department of Epidemiology was created in January 2017. Virginie Pommelet, MD, MPH, collaborates with the 4 laboratories in IPL, bringing methodological and statistical support when needed.

With the view of encouraging transversal work within IPL, the BiolaoPlus Project, « An integrated approach to detect emerging pathogens and assess the infectious disease burden of a remote area within Khammouane Province in the Lao PDR » was initiated in September 2017 with financial support from NMRC-A. It brings together IPL’s 5 laboratories’ expertise in one field site.

In collaboration with the LLL, a Knowledge Attitude and Practice (KAP) survey regarding vaccination among adolescents was conducted in a secondary school in Vientiane Capital. Vaccine knowledge being one of the keys to the success of a vaccination program, this survey assessed the impact of an education film on vaccination developed by the Ministry of Health of Laos.

The Department also works with the Department of Virology on the Dengue seroprevalence survey within the ECOMORE 2 Project.

Finally, in the framework of BiolaoPlus porject, we organized ethic courses for the IPL staff involved in the project in order for them to complete the online CITI training course on ethics.