SIVIGILA: public health surveillance in Colombia
- System and programme
It is the national system that collects and analyses cases of events of public health interest, coordinated by the INS, so that action comes in time.
What it is
The Public Health Surveillance System (SIVIGILA), created by Decree 3518 of 2006 and now compiled in Decree 780 of 2016, provides systematic and timely information on events that affect or may affect the health of the population. It is coordinated by the National Institute of Health (INS) with the Ministry of Health. Data start in the primary data-generating units (UPGD), pass to the municipal, departmental and district notifying units, and reach the INS.
How it is organised
- UPGD: hospitals, clinics, health centres and laboratories that capture the cases.
- Municipal notifying unit (UNM): consolidates its network of UPGD and notifies the department.
- Departmental or district notifying unit (UND): reviews, consolidates and notifies the INS.
- INS: consolidates the national level, publishes protocols and bulletins and supports outbreak response; the Ministry sets policy.
Worked example
- On a made-up Monday, an IPS (UPGD) sees a 9-year-old boy bitten by a stray dog that ran away.
- Every bite by an animal that can transmit rabies is notified immediately from the UPGD to the municipal notifying unit.
- The municipal notifying unit alerts the zoonosis programme to find and observe the dog; the UPGD treats the wound and decides on prophylaxis.
- At the weekly closing (Mondays at noon for UPGD in 2026), every UPGD reports its events and its negative notification for measles.
- With the follow-up of the animal and the patient, the case is updated in the system with its final classification.
Types of notification in SIVIGILA
| Type | When | For which events |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | At the close of each epidemiological week, by level | All mandatory notifiable events |
| Immediate | As soon as the case is identified; at most 1 day | Events prioritised for their severity or epidemic potential |
| Super-immediate | Automatic alert when the case is recorded | Top-priority events defined by the INS |
| Negative | Weekly, even with no cases | Priority events under elimination or eradication |
Markers
- SIVIGILA
- INS
- UPGD
- UNM
- UND
- Immediate notification
In practice
- The doctor who suspects an event of public health interest fills in the notification form; confirmation is not awaited.
- INS protocols define suspected, probable and confirmed cases for each event.
Reference norms
- Decree 3518 of 2006: creates and regulates SIVIGILA (compiled in Decree 780 of 2016).
- INS national guidelines for public health surveillance (published every year).
- INS protocols and notification forms for each event.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Which rule created SIVIGILA?
Decree 3518 of 2006, now compiled in Decree 780 of 2016.
What is a UPGD?
The primary data-generating unit: the public or private entity that captures events of public health interest and generates information for the system.
What is the difference between weekly and immediate notification?
Weekly notification is sent at the close of each epidemiological week for all events; immediate notification is made as soon as a case of a priority event is identified, within one day.
What is negative notification for?
To record that there were no cases of priority events; it separates silence due to no cases from silence due to no reporting.
Connections
Educational content on epidemiological and statistical methods; the examples use made-up numbers to teach the calculation. Not a clinical or legal guide: current Colombian rules are in the official sources.
Sources: Decreto 3518 de 2006 (Departamento Administrativo de la Función Pública, Colombia (Gestor Normativo), 2006); Lineamientos nacionales para la vigilancia en salud pública 2026 (vigilancia basada en eventos predefinidos) (Instituto Nacional de Salud (INS), Colombia, 2026); SIVIGILA (Instituto Nacional de Salud (INS), Colombia, 2026).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.