Project
Strategic surveillance for food safety
May 14, 2019
The Food Standards Agency engaged RAND Europe to assist with the design and implementation of a strategic surveillance system for the UK food system. The study team designed an end-to-end approach with five connected steps that are data-driven, proactive and flexible. We identified tools, techniques and methods for each step, and considered implementation steps in terms of their impact and feasibility.
Designing a surveillance approach and considerations for implementation
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The Food Standards Agency (FSA) engaged RAND Europe to assist with the design and implementation of a strategic surveillance system for the UK food system. This is in support of a broader programme of work at the FSA, launched in late 2017, to develop a new approach to strategic surveillance that is data-driven, proactive and flexible. The study team was tasked to produce an end-to-end cycle with implementation steps; identify tools and techniques to implement against each step of the approach; and, develop recommendations on the feasibility and impact of the steps being implemented. RAND Europe analysis took a top-down approach (i.e. by using existing FSA models) and a bottom-up approach (i.e. clustering themes emerging from interview data) in order to produce a proposed operating model for strategic surveillance. RAND Europe designed an overall approach to strategic surveillance comprised of five connected yet discrete steps, which were: Plan and direct; Collect and collate; Analyse and produce; Report and disseminate, and; Evaluate and review. As a result of the study, RAND Europe produced eight implementation steps for the FSA to consider going forward.
Chapter One
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) needs an approach to strategic surveillance
Chapter Two
Designing an approach to strategic surveillance
Chapter Three
An effective approach to selecting and prioritising topics
Chapter Four
Improving communication and coordination
Chapter Five
Gathering quality data, information and knowledge
Chapter Six
Concluding reflections and implementation considerations for the FSA
Appendix A
Detailed view of the approach
Appendix B
Identification of skills capture, analytic tools and methods other than software packages
The research described in this report was commissioned by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and conducted by RAND Europe.
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