Committee to Advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel (CATMAT): Workplan
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Preamble
The following list represents policy questions for the Committee to Advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel Medicine and Travel (CATMAT) for 2024-2025. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CATMAT workplan items from previous years were put on hold to support timely COVID-19 priorities and guidance for the Public Health Agency of Canada.
Furthermore, it is acknowledged that not all of these topics will be addressed in the next year; some will be carried forward to subsequent years. This list, however, represents priority selections to be undertaken by CATMAT. As new travel information becomes available and/or new products/indications are authorized, workplan items may be added for consideration, altering priorities.
The following triggers may drive items for the CATMAT workplan:
- Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk
- Key publications with clinical practice implication
- National Advisory Committee on Immunization's (NACI) update of the Canadian Immunization Guide (CIG) chapters
- New Canadian recommendation by a government or professional organization
- New safety or efficacy/effectiveness considerations for existing treatment/prophylaxis
- New treatment, chemoprophylaxis, vaccine, diagnostic test or new indications/medical products
- Product supply issues for treatment/prophylaxis
- Public health emergency
- Recommendations by reputable international organizations
2024-2025 Workplan
| Projects currently underway | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Initiative | Policy/Program Issues | Trigger(s) | |
| Animal Bites (including rabies) |
Develop updated guidelines on rabies vaccine pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) | Key publications with clinical practice implications, recommendations by reputable international organizations, and alignment with NACI | |
| Chikungunya | Develop new guidelines for chikungunya vaccine product(s) | New treatment, chemoprophylaxis, vaccine, diagnostic test or new indications/medical products | |
| Dengue | Develop recommendations to advise Canadians who may encounter dengue vaccine while travelling to popular destinations where the vaccine is authorized | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk; and new treatment, chemoprophylaxis, vaccine, diagnostic test or new indications/medical products | |
| Guidelines Development and Methodology Handbook | Develop a handbook outlining the committee's methodology (include use of the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation [GRADE]), and streamline/standardize the statement development process | Key publications with clinical practice implications, recommendations by reputable international organizations, and alignment with NACI | |
| Tuberculosis | Develop updated guidelines on tuberculosis screening and preventive treatment for travellers | Key publications with clinical practice implications and new Canadian recommendation by a government or professional organization | |
| Yellow Fever | Develop updated guidelines on yellow fever and vaccination | Key publications with clinical practice implications, changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, new Canadian recommendation by a government or professional organization, and NACI update of the CIG chapters | |
| Malaria | Chapters 2 & 3: Prevention and risk assessment Prevention — bite protection measures and malaria education |
Develop a harmonized statement chapter on malaria prevention, risk assessment, bite protection measures, and malaria education | Key publications with clinical practice implications |
| Chapter 4: Prevention — chemoprophylaxis regimens |
Update the Malaria statement chapter on chemoprophylaxis regimens for malaria prevention | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, and key publications with clinical practice implication | |
| Chapter 5: Prevention in special hosts |
Update the Malaria statement chapters on prevention in special hosts for the following populations: Chapter 5.1: children Chapter 5.2: pregnancy and breastfeeding Chapter 5.4: travellers with co-morbidities Chapter 5.5: migrants and those visiting friends and relatives |
Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk; key publications with clinical practice implications; new safety or efficacy/effectiveness considerations for existing treatments and prophylaxis; and recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations | |
| Chapter 7: Treatment |
Update the Malaria statement chapter on treatment of malaria | Recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations, changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, and new safety or efficacy/effectiveness considerations for existing treatments/prophylaxis | |
| Next projects | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Initiative | Policy/Program Issues | Trigger(s) | |
| High Altitude Illness | Update new clinical guidelines and resources | Key publications with clinical practice implications and recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations | |
| Immunocompromised Traveller | Update guidance for this special population to reflect increasing diversity in health conditions and complexity in therapeutics | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk | |
| Malaria | Appendix 1 | Update the Malaria statement Appendix 1 on malaria risk and recommended preventive measures by geographical area | Routine updates, changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, and recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations |
| Chapter 5.3: Prevention in special hosts — long term traveller or expatriate |
Update the Malaria statement chapter on prevention in special hosts — long term traveller or expatriate | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, and key publications with clinical practice implications | |
| Chapter 8: Drugs for the prevention and treatment of malaria |
Update the Malaria statement chapter on drugs for the prevention and treatment of malaria | Key publications with clinical practice implications; new safety or efficacy/effectiveness considerations for existing treatments/prophylaxis; and recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations | |
| Travellers' Diarrhea | Update new regimens available and guidance on prophylaxis and antibiotics stewardship in regard to increasing resistance | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk, and recommendations/adoption by reputable international organizations | |
| Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) | Develop updated guidelines on VFR | Changes in epidemiology and evolving traveller risk | |
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