Dear Colleagues:

Welcome to the 21st Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) International Nights.

Like FETP, International Nights has undergone changes over the years to reflect the increasing importance and value of FETPs' contributions to global health. Since 2016, the event has grown from one to two nights — one night dedicated to poster presentations and the other to oral presentations. Last year’s conference was virtual for the first time and was a great success, with more than 700 attendees each day. This year, we are again having a virtual conference and we hope for even stronger participation.

Since 1980, when Thailand became the first country to establish an FETP outside of North America, the FETP family has grown to more than 80 countries. To strengthen surveillance and epidemiology capacity at all levels of the public health system (from local to regional to national), we have implemented three tiers of FETP: Frontline, Intermediate, and Advanced. We are continuing to expand FETP globally with plans to support, start, or strengthen 31 frontline programs and 29 intermediate programs in 29 countries.

FETPs are crucial to CDC’s mission of global health security and the Agency is committed to supporting this valuable program. Today, more than ever, FETPs play a crucial role to prevent, detect, and respond to public health threats wherever they occur. The past 2 years alone have brought stark reminders of the threats that face us, including Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Guinea, the earthquake in Haiti, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, we continue to battle other threats such as polio, measles, and many other diseases. FETP graduates and trainees have been essential responders in their countries, including working in important roles leading and coordinating national responses. In 2021 alone, FETP Advanced and Intermediate residents responded to 583 public health emergencies, including 87 COVID-19 outbreaks, 49 measles outbreaks, and 45 malaria outbreaks, to name a few. They also contributed to scientific research and understanding with the publication of 168 scientific papers and over 40 surveillance reports.

Thank you for attending this year's International Nights event and helping us celebrate more than four decades of work to improve global health security for everyone.

RADM Nancy Knight, MD, USPHS Director, Division of Global Health Protection Center for Global Health U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention