Notifiable diseases
The Barwon South West Public Health Unit (BSWPHU) has accountability for the public health management of notifiable conditions and outbreaks in our region, with the exceptions of tuberculosis, anaphylaxis and high blood lead levels.
Notifiable conditions managed by BSWPHU include vaccine-preventable diseases, blood-borne viruses, sexually transmissible infections, zoonoses, vector-borne diseases and enteric diseases, as well as antimicrobial resistant pathogens.
Our work on notifiable conditions is undertaken in collaboration with the Victorian Department of Health, other Victorian Local Public Health Units, and other key stakeholders such as Council environmental health teams, health services, clinicians, and high-risk settings.
Public health follow-up may include collection of enhanced surveillance data, case management, contact tracing, environmental management, and/or outbreak management.
Medical practitioners and pathology departments are required to notify conditions to the Victorian Department of Health in accordance with the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008. Notifications are allocated to the relevant Local Public Health Unit or the Victorian Department of Health as appropriate.
For details of all notifiable conditions, including urgency and notification requirements, please visit the Victorian Department of Health’s notifiable conditions page.
The BSWPHU Health Protection team is available to provide advice and assistance to medical practitioners in our region about any aspect of the public health management of notifiable diseases within our scope.
If you have been contacted by the BSWPHU, it is usually in response to a notification received by a doctor and/or laboratory about a notifiable condition or outbreak. Public health follow up by the BSWPHU is required on behalf of the Victorian Department of Health. Public health follow up is usually as straightforward as gathering basic information relating to a person’s demographics, illness experience, and providing education to help prevent disease transmission. In some situations, the BSWPHU team may need to do a more in-depth contact tracing interview.
Further information for patients can be found on the Better Health Channel.