PHRESH

Luxembourg is taking a major step forward in public health preparedness with the launch in January 2025 of the PHRESH (Public Health Rapid Epidemiological Surveillance Hub) project.

Co-funded by a direct grant from the European Commission, this ambitious four-year initiative is designed to transform Luxembourg’s infectious disease surveillance capabilities through cutting-edge digitalization and enhanced cross-sector collaboration.

Led by the Health inspection at the directorate of health, PHRESH brings together key national stakeholders, including the SORMAS Foundation (Surveillance, outbreak response management, and analysis system), ALVA (administration luxembourgeoise vétérinaire et alimentaire), LNS (Laboratoire national de santé), LIST (Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology), AGE (administration de la gestion des eaux), and LIH (Luxembourg Institute of Health), with a unified goal: to build a more responsive, integrated, and resilient surveillance system capable of tackling both current and future public health threats.

Why PHRESH?

Building on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and based on recommendations from a recent consultancy on the surveillance systems in Luxembourg, PHRESH addresses the urgent need to modernize Luxembourg’s surveillance infrastructure.

The focus is on:

  • Accelerating digital transformation in disease surveillance,
  • Enhancing real-time response capabilities,
  • Facilitating collaboration across the One Health spectrum – connecting human, animal, and environmental health.

Our objectives

Overarching goal:

  • To strengthen the national public health surveillance framework, ensuring Luxembourg is equipped to meet European standards and rapidly respond to infectious disease threats.

Specific objectives:

  • Automate epidemiological data collection from healthcare providers and patients.
  • Improve data quality, timeliness, interoperability, and accuracy.
  • Integrate environmental and veterinary data through a One Health approach.
  • Enhance early outbreak detection and response.
  • Formalize collaboration among public health stakeholders.

Key project activities

  • WP2
    Expand SORMAS to include all notifiable diseases, introduce automated digital surveys, and enable ECDC and WHO reporting.
  • WP3
    Strengthen One Health surveillance and build a digital communication platform between sectors.
  • WP4
    Implement real-time monitoring of emergency department data to detect early outbreak signals.
  • WP5
    Develop an interactive public dashboard for infectious disease data, boosting transparency and public engagement.

Expected outcomes & impact

Short-term:

  • Streamlined data collection and sharing
  • Greater public and professional awareness
  • Fulfillment of international health obligations

Medium-term:

  • Comprehensive, cross-sector surveillance coverage
  • Enhanced detection of disease emergence
  • Informed understanding of transmission patterns

Long-term:

  • Full alignment with global surveillance standards
  • A cornerstone of a responsive, adaptive national health system
  • Strengthened decision-making and resource allocation
  • Lasting interdisciplinary collaboration in public health

Lancement PHRESH

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Project overview and data flow

Videos: Workshops from 14th. May 2025

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