Develop a Surveillance Plan: Sampling Plan

The Sampling Plan may be the largest section of an outbreak surveillance plan and require the most time to develop.

These guidelines may be used for developing sampling plans for commercial operations or backyard populations.

What to Include

The Sampling Plan provides the details about:

• What types of samples to collect,
• Test types and test sensitivity,
• Target population
• How many premises to sample,
• How many animals to sample on each premises,
• If opted, identification of the actual premises to visit and the specific animals to sample
• Sampling Priorities
• How frequently to sample.

Action Items

Write the Sampling Plan section of the surveillance plan. The links below provide specific information on each subsection of the Sampling Plan:

• Specimen Types and Laboratory Tests
• Target Population
• Sample Sizes
  

• • Determine the number of premises to sample
  • Determine the number of animals to sample per premises  
  • [Optional] Identification of the actual premises to visit and the specific animals to sample

• Sampling Priorities
  
Frequency of Sampling