The complementary roles of two agencies in strengthening regional oversight of public health policies
The discussions highlighted the complementary roles of the two agencies (Santé publique France and ARS), particularly through a review of the actions carried out in 2025.

Identifying unusual health events is one of the actions carried out jointly. For example: the ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine observed an increase in foodborne illnesses, the regional unit of Santé publique France conducted investigations and identified a link to the consumption of oysters contaminated with a norovirus, and the Prefecture then implemented management measures.
Other examples of the complementary daily work between Santé publique France NA and the ARS were cited:

• Population health surveillance (mental health, cardiovascular diseases, mortality, perinatal health, sexual health, etc.) to support regional health policy,

• Syndromic surveillance (monitoring of emergency room visits, monitoring of SOS-Médecins association activity) and detection of public health events (onset of epidemics, clusters of cases) to rapidly implement appropriate management measures,

• Monitoring of seasonal epidemics (influenza, bronchiolitis, gastroenteritis),

• Surveillance of notifiable diseases (meningococcal infections, measles),

• Monitoring of the chikungunya outbreak that affected the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region last summer,

• Estimating the impact of heat waves.

The information produced by Santé publique France as part of surveillance and field investigations is integral to the management measures and prevention actions carried out by the ARS. The regional unit of Santé publique France produces indicators and disseminates them through the Santé publique France Barometer and its regional bulletins, which are accessible on the homepage of the ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine website.

Roundtables to discuss the relevance of regional indicators in guiding public health policies

As part of this steering committee meeting, two roundtables were organized: The first, on surveillance and early warning, provided an opportunity to draw lessons from past health events (e.g., chikungunya for the upcoming surveillance season). The second, on knowledge generation and the development of multiple health indicators (mental health, perinatal care, cardiovascular diseases, addictions, vaccination), facilitated a discussion on their use in the ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine’s regional public health strategy.

Significant collective challenges for the next three years

This steering committee also aimed to validate the priorities and focus areas of the regional unit’s future program for the next three years. The challenges are numerous. It will be necessary to anticipate future threats (arboviruses, heat waves, the emergence of new alerts) and produce public health indicators useful for guiding public health policies (the future Regional Health Plan—PRS).

Furthermore, conducting local studies to better understand the health status of populations and address social inequalities in access to care will be a priority to finely tailor public policies to each region and improve the long-term health of the people of Nouvelle-Aquitaine.

In conclusion, this joint event confirms the need to maintain active and operational collaboration on a daily basis between the ARS and Santé publique France teams to collectively address current and emerging public health challenges with the responsiveness expected of health authorities. Strengthening joint communication by the two agencies aimed at the public must ensure a better understanding of their roles and missions among the public and information channels (media, social media, etc.) that are awaiting reliable and well-reasoned information.