Sentinel physicians: 

• Report the total number of patient visits to their facilities each week, as well as the number of patient visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) within four age categories (0-4 years, 5-24 years, 25-64 years, and 65 + years). 
• Collect respiratory specimens from a sample of patients with ILI for virus culture at no charge by the MDCH Laboratory.

Medical providers of any specialty (e.g., family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, infectious disease) in nearly any setting (e.g., private practice, public health clinic, urgent care center, emergency room, university student health center) who are likely to see patients with influenza-like illness can be sentinels.  The only exception is for those providers who primarily care for institutionalized populations (e.g., nursing homes, prisons).

The advantages of being a sentinel physician include:

• Free laboratory testing (respiratory virus culture) for approximately 11 specimens per site per year
• Weekly feedback on submitted data
• Summaries of regional, state, and national influenza data
• Free subscriptions to the CDC publications, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) and Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Family practice residents may fulfill their residency research requirement by participating in the influenza surveillance system

More information on Influenza Sentinel Provider Surveillance

• An Influenza Sentinel Physician shares his experience with Influenza Sentinel Surveillance in the Michigan Immunization Update, December 2005
• Map of surveillance sites in Michigan
• Sentinel Brochure
• Learn how to volunteer