Help--we need a helpline! A public health audit case study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Multi-disciplinary public health audits are challenging outside of routine reporting.
• Emergency situations necessitate rapid, effective public health interventions.
• Evaluating ad-hoc public health services requires specific methodologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the audit process for an emergency telephone helpline.
• To establish auditable standards for public health emergency helplines.
• To demonstrate the feasibility of auditing specialized public health services.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a multi-disciplinary audit of a telephone helpline established during a meningococcal disease outbreak.
• Developed specific audit criteria based on the helpline's function and public health objectives.
• Collected and analyzed data pertaining to helpline operations and outcomes.

Main Results:

• The audit successfully evaluated the emergency helpline's performance.
• Identified key areas for improvement and best practices in helpline management.
• Established a framework of standards applicable to similar public health initiatives.

Conclusions:

• Auditing emergency public health helplines is feasible and valuable.
• The developed standards can enhance the quality and effectiveness of public health emergency response.
• This audit provides a model for evaluating specialized public health services during outbreaks.