NOTIVISA and the Public Health Laboratories: The interface of information in Health Surveillance

This article presents some aspects about the relevance of NOTIVISA system as a tool to support the management of the National Health Surveillance System. NOTIVISA, a computerized reporting system, was established to receive notifications of adverse events (AEs) and technical defects (QTs) concerning healthcare products and services. The article aimed to profile the situational notifications of AEs and QTs by the 27 Central Laboratories of Public Health (LACENs) of the country in 2008. A questionnaire was used to collect data about the number of samples analyzed and the number of notifications made. The survey showed that 24,981 samples were received for analyses by the LACENs in 2008; however, only 1.5% of the information about AEs and QTs was reported to NOTIVISA. Only 19 LACENs responded to the survey, and 15 (79 %) informed us that they had not recorded any notifications. NOTIVISA is an important resource for directing the actions of health surveillance. There is still a need for delegation of personnel who are responsible for notifying NOTIVISA. The laboratories are essential in the process of investigation and elucidation of AEs and QTs as well as for contributing to defining regulatory policies in the healthcare field. Their role as the primary notifiers of AEs and QTs to NOTIVISA needs to be clearly designated.