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Olsen Jennifer

There is a significant body of literature on the use of social media for monitoring ailments such as influenza-like illness1 and cholera,2 as well as public opinions on topics such as vaccination.3 In general, these studies have shown that social media correlates well with official data sources,1,2,3 with the trends identifiable before official data are available.2 However, less is known about the impact of integrating social media into public health practice, and resulting interventions. Therefore, the ISDS Social Media for Disease Surveillance Workgroup initiated a systematic literature review on the use of social media for actionable biosurveillance.

Objective

The objective of this study is to systematically review the literature on the use of social media for biosurveillance in order to evaluate whether this data source can improve public health practice or community health outcomes.

Submitted by elamb on

During responses, an electronic medical record (EMR) allows federal emergency response staff to view and evaluate near real-time clinical encounter data. Analysis of EMR patient data can enhance situational awareness and provide decision advantage for headquarters' staff during both domestic and international events. The EMR was utilized by field medical personnel during the response to the Haiti earthquake.

Objective

To describe some uses of EMR data for surveillance and situational awareness during disaster response.

Referenced File
Submitted by elamb on

Information is imperative to detecting and intervening in a disease outbreak, but the enormous amount of information that public health leaders must sift through can become overwhelming and obstructive. In the disease outbreak environment, it is imperative to understand which sources of information add value and should be used for decision making in this limited timeframe. Recent research has found that social media sources and news media sources may provide indicators of disease outbreaks prior to traditional reporting sources (i.e. surveillance systems) (1). WHO uses informal information sources for about 65% of their outbreak investigations and relies on informal sources for daily surveillance activities (2).

Objective

Share the results of a survey on knowledge and attitudes regarding digital disease detection amongst ISDS members and share the resulting framework.

Submitted by knowledge_repo… on

EpiCore draws on the knowledge of a global community of human, animal, and environmental health professionals to verify information on disease outbreaks in their geographic regions. By using innovative surveillance techniques and crowdsourcing these experts, EpiCore enables faster global outbreak detection, verification, and reporting

Submitted by teresa.hamby@d… on

Zika, chikungunya, and dengue have surged in the Americas over the past several years and pose serious health threats in regions of the U.S. where Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquito vectors occur. Ae. aegypti have been detected up to 6 months of the year or longer in parts of Arizona, Florida, and Texas where mosquito surveillance is regularly conducted. However, many areas in the U.S. lack basic data on vector presence or absence. The Zika, dengue, and chikungunya viruses range in pathogenicity, but all include asymptomatic or mild presentations for which individuals may not seek care. Traditional passive surveillance systems rely on confirmatory laboratory testing and may not detect emergent disease until there is high morbidity in a community or severe disease presentation. Participatory surveillance is an approach to disease detection that allows the public to directly report symptoms electronically and provides rapid visualization of aggregated data to the user and public health agencies. Several such systems have been shown to be sensitive, accurate, and timelier than traditional surveillance. We developed Kidenga, a mobile phone app and participatory surveillance system, to address some of the challenges in early detection of day-biting mosquitoes and Aedes-borne arboviruses and to enhance dissemination of information to at-risk communities. 

Objective

(1) Early detection of Aedes-borne arboviral disease;

(2) improved data on Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus distribution in the United States (U.S.); and

(3) education of clinicians and the public. 

 

Submitted by Magou on
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