High threat pathogens preparedness and response workshop for south-eastern European countries has been organised on 23-24 November 2017, in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The aim of the meeting was to analyze and improve the capacities and capabilities of national public health laboratories in countries of eastern and south Eastern Europe to prepare for, and respond to, emerging and imported high threat pathogens.

Specifically, the objectives were to:

From November 13^th to 15^th three SECID’s specialists (one from Serbia: Dr Dragana Dimitrijevic and two from Montenegro: Dr Božidarka Rakocevic and Ana Radulovic) conducted a study visit to RIVM (the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment); NIVEL (Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research) and Erasmus MC. This activity was part of the project "Surveillance and Response to Avian and Pandemic Influenza by the National Health Authorities of Countries of South East Europe", financed by CDC, USA.

On the 27-28.09.2017 in town of Hisaria, Bulgaria, was held second annual meeting of human and veterinarian experts on influenza preparedness within the project “Surveillance and Response To Avian And Pandemic Influenza”, funded by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), executed by “Southeast European Centre for Surveillance and Control of Infectious Diseases”.

Participants from different organizations admitted the meeting.

On 16 November 2017 a workshop took place in Tirana, Albania. This workshop was organized in collaboration with Robert Koch Institute and Department of Infectious Diseases in Institute of Public Health Albania, with the facilitation of South East European Center for Surveillance and Control of Infectious Diseases (SECID). The general aim of workshop was to present the new case definitions and to test them in the current Albanian situation.