Strengthening global health security through health early warning systems: A literature review and case study

Abstract

Disease transmission is dependent on a variety of factors, including the characteristics of an event, such as crowding and shared accommodations, the potential of participants having prolonged exposure and close contact with infectious individuals, the type of activities, and the characteristics of the participants, such as their age and immunity to infectious agents [1–3]. Effective control of outbreaks of infectious diseases requires rapid diagnosis and intervention in high-risk settings. As a result, syndromic and event-based surveillance may be used to enhance the responsiveness of the surveillance system [1]. In public health, surveillance is collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data across time to inform decision-making and aid policy implementation [1]. In this review article we aimed to provide an overview of the principles, types, uses, advantages, and limitations of surveillance systems and to highlight the importance of early warning systems in response to the information received by disease surveillance. The study conducted a comprehensive literature search using several databases, selecting, and reviewing 78 articles that covered different types of surveillance systems, their applications, and their impact on controlling infectious diseases. The article also presents a case study from the Hajj gathering, which highlighted the development, evaluation, and impact of early warning systems on response to the information received by disease surveillance. The study concludes that ongoing disease surveillance should be accompanied by well-designed early warning and response systems, and continuous efforts should be invested in evaluating and validating these systems to minimize the risk of reporting delays and reducing the risk of outbreaks.

Keywords

• Health security
• Public health surveillance
• Early warning system
• Pandemics
• Infectious disease transmission