A Survey of Pertussis Surveillance and Immunization Practices in Canada, 2012

In 2012 there was an increase in the incidence of pertussis in the Americas. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) made a number of recommendations to strengthen surveillance, investigate outbreaks, to measure adequacy and timeliness of immunizations within the population and monitor policies related to high risk individuals such as health care workers and pregnant women.

To review measures taken in Canada by provinces and territories to control and prevent pertussis spread.

A survey was developed based on PAHO recommendations and distributed through the Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health to all provinces and territories.

All provinces participated in the survey. Strong surveillance is aided by consistent use of case definitions; most provinces use the national case definition. Outbreaks are investigated at the local/provincial level. Immunization coverage is not well captured but efforts are underway to improve monitoring through surveys and immunization registries. Policies have been implemented related to high risk individuals but evaluations of these policies have not been undertaken as of yet.

Based on the PAHO recommendations, Canada is well poised to provide surveillance data on pertussis. There are gaps in surveillance, in standardization among jurisdictions and in immunization coverage data which may need to be addressed to gain a better understanding of the impact of pertussis in Canada.