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Related diseases:
Role
The Polio Expert Panel (PEP) has an ongoing role to:
- review and classify all reported cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) as
- non-polio AFP
- AFP with more information required
- polio compatible AFP
- poliomyelitis
- non AFP
- advise on poliomyelitis surveillance, prevention and eradication.
Members
| Member | Background and experience |
|---|---|
| Associate Professor Philip Britton (Chair) | Paediatric Active Enhanced Diseases Surveillance representative – Kids Research Institute, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Westmead, NSW |
| Dr Shopna Bag | Public health physician – Director, Public Health Medicine, Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, Parramatta, NSW |
| Dr Anne Morris | Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit representative – The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Westmead, NSW |
| Professor John Pearn | Paediatrician – Emeritus Professor, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Royal Children’s Hospital, Herston, Qld |
| Dr Eppie Yiu | Paediatric neurologist – Neurology Department, Royal Children’s Hospital, Parkville, Vic |
| Associate Professor Bruce Thorley | Virologist – Director, National Enterovirus Reference Laboratory, VIDRL, The Doherty Institute, Melbourne, Vic |
| Dr Sarah Allen | Paediatric Infectious Diseases Specialist, Department of Immigrant Health/General Paediatrics, royal Children’s Hospital, Parkville, Vic |
| Ms Linda Hobday (Secretariat) | National Enterovirus Reference Laboratory, VIDRL, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Vic |
Meetings
The PEP meets:
- every 2 months by teleconference to review Australian AFP cases
- annually face-to-face to review the performance AFP surveillance systems.
The PEP convenes on an ad hoc basis where there is a suspected case of poliomyelitis in Australia.
Related committees
The National AFP Surveillance Coordinator tasks the PEP to review and classify AFP cases reported by the:
The PEP is a subcommittee Communicable Diseases Network Australia (CDNA).
Contact
Polio Expert Panel secretariat
Contact us for further information on the committee or previous meeting minutes and agendas.