Providing all the data needed to effectively monitor the epidemic across the country

Santé publique France has established a surveillance system by building on existing systems, refining them, and creating new ones. This enables the production and publication of indicators and analyses that closely reflect on-the-ground realities.

Daily publication of indicators

To provide key figures on the epidemic at a glance, Santé publique France has created a dashboard on its website. Updated every evening, it shows the day’s trends. It is available via the website’s homepage under “Coronavirus: Key Figures and Trends of COVID-19 in France and Around the World.”

To ensure that all stakeholders have access to data on the epidemic’s progression that is as close as possible to local areas and populations, all COVID-19 epidemic monitoring indicators are broken down by region, department, gender, and age group and are accessible via the Géodes mapping observatory. In total, more than 100 COVID-19-related indicators are available as open data, enhancing access to the reference data on which health analyses and recommendations are based, in support of public policy decisions.

Weekly Publications

Each week, Santé publique France publishes a national epidemiological update. This is an analysis of data from partner networks and weekly indicators that provides context for the situation and allows for week-to-week comparison of observed trends.

Santé publique France’s regional units also publish regional epidemiological updates to analyze the evolution of the epidemic in greater detail at the regional and departmental levels.

These epidemiological updates are available on the Santé publique France homepage.

Monitoring changes in behavior and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

In March 2020, Santé publique France launched the CoviPrev survey to track changes in behaviors (precautionary measures, lockdown, vaccination uptake) and mental health in the general population (well-being, disorders), as well as their main determinants.

A section of the website is dedicated to this survey to explain its objectives and methodology, and provides detailed results and summaries from the various waves conducted from the first lockdown period to the present. These survey waves are repeated on a regular basis, and the results are updated regularly. This repeated survey provides field workers and decision-makers with indicators to adjust their prevention efforts.

Access the latest findings on COVID-19

Every day, in the fields of surveillance, prevention, and health promotion alone, several hundred scientific articles are published. So-called “gray literature” from research institutes or national and international agencies also contributes to this scientific output, and all of these publications help improve our understanding of the disease and its impact.

Santé publique France offers tools for real-time tracking of this new knowledge on its website:

• a special Covid-19 series of the BEH (Weekly Epidemiological Bulletin), which publishes articles submitted by all public health researchers.

• rapid summaries of knowledge about the virus. Santé publique France also publishes scientific reports and summaries on the COVID-19 epidemic.

• a literature watch on COVID-19 that includes so-called "gray literature" (reports and communications from some thirty French or international governmental or scientific institutions concerning the coronavirus).

Provision of numerous tools for all audiences

Santé publique France makes the following available to frontline workers and the general public (also accessible via its website):

• prevention and information tools intended for healthcare professionals, the general public, and vulnerable individuals. The Agency shares posters and brochures translated into 27 languages, video and audio spots, and flyers,

• remote support services available during the epidemic, categorized by topic (violence, grief, psychological distress, addiction, parenting, etc.).

• Resources necessary for managing the COVID-19 pandemic for healthcare professionals are also available online: guidelines, questionnaires, protocols, reporting forms, methodological guides, fact sheets, etc.

Finally, press releases and press kits related to COVID-19 are available for download in the Press section of the Santé publique France website.