SORMAS stands for “Surveillance, Outbreak Response Management and Analysis System“, developed during the West African Ebola pandemic 2014/15. SORMAS is an early warning and management system based on flexible mobile telephone apps in combination with modern cloud technology, enabling even countries equipped with only limited information and communication technologies (ICT) • To record infection outbreaks without delay, • To monitor complex processes to interrupt infection chains and • To ensure continuous analyses of the epidemiological situation
GHS-DSD requested to have the Event-based surveillance (EBS) as part of the SORMAS application. Though there is an event module in SORMAS, it does not address the exact needs of the GHS-DSD team. Based on the demand, the EBS has to be built from the ground up without touching the existing SORMAS event codes.
Event-based surveillance (EBS) is the formalized and rapid capture of information about events that are of potential risk to public health. Information is initially captured as a signal by the Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) system, a part of the Early Warning and Response System, as representing potential acute risk to human health such as a disease outbreak. EBS is the detection and immediate reporting of public health events, using well-defined signals which are broad and indicate the possibility of a serious public health event. Not all signals may necessarily be events of public health importance, and as such they all need to be triaged, verified, and assessed for risk before a response is initiated. Signals that are verified as true, are classified as events. Signals which may signify potential risks may include:
• Occurrence of disease in humans, such as unexplained clustered cases of a disease or syndromes, unusual disease patterns or unexpected deaths, as recognized by health workers and other informants in the community.
• Occurrences related to potential exposure for humans, such as incidents related to diseases and deaths in animals, contaminated food products, and environmental hazards including contaminated water.
• Signals of potential exposure of human beings to biological, chemical, or radiological and nuclear hazards, or occurrence of natural or man-made disasters.
Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) also involves media scanning, and this entails the regular scanning of newspapers, internet sites and media alert systems e.g., Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources (EIOS) portal, ProMed, blogs, social media, radios, and television (TV) for signals that could point to potential public health events.
Event Based Surveillance system is relatively more sensitive when compared to traditional indicator-based surveillance approaches. Synchronizing information received through the EBS system with Indicator- Based Surveillance (IBS) is essential to ensuring appropriate response to events.
The EBS steps is as seen in the image below:
Added Value/Benefit
It will contribute to early detection of public health threats.
Acceptance Criteria
[ ] Create signal/event directory
[ ] Create Signal form to capture information sources and information registrants.
[ ] Create Triaging form to record signal category and triaging decision.
[ ] Create signal verification form to capture outcome (i.e. whether event or non event) and other event details.
[ ] Create Risk Assessment form to record risk assessment level based on answered questions.
[ ] Create an Alert form to document response actions taken.
[ ] Create EBS dashboard display information based on captured data.
Feature Description
GHS-DSD requested to have the Event-based surveillance (EBS) as part of the SORMAS application. Though there is an event module in SORMAS, it does not address the exact needs of the GHS-DSD team. Based on the demand, the EBS has to be built from the ground up without touching the existing SORMAS event codes.
Event-based surveillance (EBS) is the formalized and rapid capture of information about events that are of potential risk to public health. Information is initially captured as a signal by the Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) system, a part of the Early Warning and Response System, as representing potential acute risk to human health such as a disease outbreak. EBS is the detection and immediate reporting of public health events, using well-defined signals which are broad and indicate the possibility of a serious public health event. Not all signals may necessarily be events of public health importance, and as such they all need to be triaged, verified, and assessed for risk before a response is initiated. Signals that are verified as true, are classified as events. Signals which may signify potential risks may include: • Occurrence of disease in humans, such as unexplained clustered cases of a disease or syndromes, unusual disease patterns or unexpected deaths, as recognized by health workers and other informants in the community. • Occurrences related to potential exposure for humans, such as incidents related to diseases and deaths in animals, contaminated food products, and environmental hazards including contaminated water. • Signals of potential exposure of human beings to biological, chemical, or radiological and nuclear hazards, or occurrence of natural or man-made disasters. Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) also involves media scanning, and this entails the regular scanning of newspapers, internet sites and media alert systems e.g., Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources (EIOS) portal, ProMed, blogs, social media, radios, and television (TV) for signals that could point to potential public health events. Event Based Surveillance system is relatively more sensitive when compared to traditional indicator-based surveillance approaches. Synchronizing information received through the EBS system with Indicator- Based Surveillance (IBS) is essential to ensuring appropriate response to events.
The EBS steps is as seen in the image below:
Added Value/Benefit
It will contribute to early detection of public health threats.
Acceptance Criteria
Implementation Details
No response
Mockups
Mockup version for Web EBS EBS_Web_Mockup_form_v3_compressed.pdf
Mockup version for Web EBS Dashoard
Additional Information
No response