(At the request of the Crisis cell FPS Public Health and the Risk Management Group)
Testing and tracing are key elements that enable to identify COVID-19 cases, find their contacts and stop the transmission of infection. The process also allows to detect asymptomatic and mild symptomatic cases early. In summary both interventions are strongly intertwined as a control strategy for early control and avoidance of a resurgence of the epidemic.
On June 10th while the number of new hospitalisations related to COVID-19 was declining, newly confirmed cases indicated that community transmission was still ongoing in Belgium. The Belgian Risk Management Group (RMG) was interested to learn about international strategies in preparation for a second COVID-19 wave. This project provides a structured comparison of the contact tracing and testing strategy in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and The Netherlands. It summarises the policies adopted in these countries and their implementation in order to provide advice to the RMG and international health authorities based on international experience.
Download the document: International comparison of COVID-19 testing and contact tracing strategies (3.56 MB) "pdf"
