Purpose
The tools below can assist outbreak investigators in collecting information, collaborating with partners, and more.
National Hypothesis Generating Questionnaire (NHGQ)
To identify a food source of an outbreak, public health officials interview sick people to find out what they ate before getting sick. This section links to several standard questionnaires used.
The NHGQ collects a standard set of information about food and other exposures for all outbreak cases identified during a multistate investigation. For some multistate outbreaks, CDC works with state partners to use the NHGQ to collect the same information across many states. This helps investigators identify a common food source more quickly.
See the questionnaire
System for Enteric Disease Response, Investigation, and Coordination (SEDRIC)
The System for Enteric Disease Response, Investigation, and Coordination (also known as SEDRIC) is a secure, cloud-based platform for foodborne and animal contact outbreak investigations. It is developed in collaboration with a private sector partner.