Health and wellness

National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases celebrates 10 years at UM

NCCID provides public health professionals with latest infectious disease information

Two computer monitors with people on the screens. A keyboard and mouse sit on a desk.
Estimated Read Time:
3 minutes
[Left screen: clockwise from top left] Dr. Aleksandra Wierzbowski, Dr. Shelley Deeks, Dr. Marina Salvadori [Right screen] Dr. Howard Njoo.
[Left screen: clockwise from top left] Dr. Aleksandra Wierzbowski, Dr. Shelley Deeks, Dr. Marina Salvadori [Right screen] Dr. Howard Njoo.
Estimated Read Time:
3 minutes

The National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID) is celebrating its 10th anniversary of being housed at the University of Manitoba.  

NCCID is the go-to source for Canadian public health professionals seeking the latest information on infectious diseases.

The centre creates and distributes research reviews, infographics and posters. It also produces podcasts, newsletters and webinars with the aim of arming front-line public health practitioners with the latest information about everything from tuberculosis to vaccine strategies and antimicrobial resistance to sexually transmitted infections.

“The University of Manitoba has been an exceptional home for NCCID over the last 10 years,” said Dr. Yoav Keynan, NCCID’s scientific director and professor of internal medicine at the Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

“The university environment has not only provided us with a foundation for our operations, but it has been instrumental in sparking new collaborations with researchers and trainees.”  

NCCID, funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), is one of six National Collaborating Centres established by the Government of Canada in 2005. The other centres are located across the country and are focused on different areas of public health, including environmental health and determinants of health.

Dr. Yoav Keynan stands in his lab.
Dr. Yoav Keynan

‘It was very intense’  

Margaret Haworth-Brockman, NCCID’s senior program manager, said a great example of the critical services it provides was during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

When news of the brand-new coronavirus was spreading around the world, the NCCID jumped into action. During the first two weeks of January 2020, the centre quickly created a disease debrief that summarized what was known about the virus.

As the pandemic continued, NCCID produced webinars, podcasts and provided public health professionals with information online. NCCID worked with PHAC to co-host COVID-19 vaccine webinars and the first one was attended by more than 1,500 people from across Canada.

Portrait of Margaret Haworth-Brockman.
Margaret Haworth-Brockman

“It was very intense. Things moved quickly. There was one vaccine, then there was another. Then there was the question of what the vaccines meant for certain populations, so there were nuances that we were able to delve into,” Haworth-Brockman said.  

Another of NCCID’s achievements is working with public health policymakers to help them understand wastewater surveillance. The centre collaborated with PHAC and academic partners to post new information and reports on using wastewater surveillance for public health planning and responses.

Public health is not just about responding to crises, it’s about building the systems and the evidence base to prevent them.

Dr. Yoav Keynan, NCCID’s scientific director and professor of internal medicine, Max Rady College of Medicine

Keynan said that the infectious diseases landscape is constantly changing, and our collective safety depends on the speed and clarity of how knowledge is shared.

“Public health is not just about responding to crises, it’s about building the systems and the evidence base to prevent them. We have been able to respond to new emerging threats while maintaining focus on ongoing infectious diseases despite waxing and waning political interest,” Keynan said.  

“Our work ensures that whether it’s a routine vaccination program or a global pandemic, we are positioned to help public health actors have the best information at their fingertips.”  

Not only are NCCID’s materials being used across Canada, Haworth-Brockman said they’re seeing an increase in people accessing their information from around the world, particularly the United States and their French language materials in France.

The next generation and beyond

In addition to informing public health practitioners, NCCID is also dedicated to training the next generation of public health leaders. Each academic term, the centre welcomes between three and five learners – including undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral – from across the country for a hands-on work experience.  

As NCCID trains the future workforce, its leadership is looking towards the next 10 years at UM. Haworth-Brockman said the team has been working on the centre’s strategic plan over the past year.  

“We see value in being more explicit about our health approaches, so those aren’t just about public health in a human realm, but animal health as well as the environment,” Haworth-Brockman said.  

“The second area is to really be more concrete about what public health has to know and needs to know about infectious diseases in climate change. And thirdly, making sure we’re up to date on where AI takes us in our work, both ethically as well as operationally.”  

Learn more about NCCID.

Boilerplate: Creating knowledge

UM is home to researchers and scholars who respond to emerging issues and lead innovation in our province and around the world. Creating knowledge that matters is one of the strategic themes you’ll find in MomentUM: Leading change together, the University of Manitoba’s 2024–2029 strategic plan.

By

Matthew Kruchak