Communicable Diseases

Description

The Department of Human Services publishes reports containing information about communicable diseases. The information is based on notifications from medical practitioners and laboratories. The reports show summaries of notified cases and rates of communicable diseases across Victoria.

Quality and Applicability

Surveillance for communicable diseases occurs under the authority of the Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations. These regulations require medical practitioners and pathology laboratories to notify the Department of Human Services when they diagnose certain communicable diseases.

Information about communicable diseases is useful if you want to know the numbers and rates of notifications in a given area. The information relates to notifications received and therefore does not necessarily reflect the true incidence of particular diseases or their contribution to a population's disease burden.

Coverage

Information about notified cases and rates of communicable diseases is available by region and local government area.

Reference Date

Information about notified cases and rates of communicable diseases refer to the past four weeks (regional reports) and 12 months (local government area reports). Reports also include year-to-date notified cases for the current and previous two years and the total annual notified cases for the previous three years.

Release Date

Daily updates to the reports are made but the information should be considered with caution as there may be a lag between receipt and recording of notification for some diseases.

Access

Access information about communicable diseases through the Victorian Government Health Information portal to Surveillance of Notifiable Infectious Diseases. Click on 'Descriptive Reports' to view information about notified cases and rates of communicable diseases.

Cost and Format

Reports are downloadable free of charge in PDF format.

More Information

Comments or queries related to surveillance data can be made to the Epidemiology and Surveillance Program, Communicable Disease Control, telephone 1300 651 160.

Additional Data Source(s)

None.