O-77 The Benefits of Real-time, Electronic Surveillance Tools for Public Health

Methods: The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) through its Regional Tourism and Health Program designed and developed two electronic-based health surveillance applications targeted towards real-time data collection and rapid response. The Tourism and Health Information System (THiS) platform is a multi-modular (Tourism, Mass Gatherings (MG) and Shelter Surveillance) web-based system built upon syndromic surveillance, and includes a real-time alert mechanism that immediately notifies of a possible health threat. The Caribbean Vessel Surveillance System (CVSS) electronic, data sharing platform captures syndromic illness and enhances the monitoring and response to illnesses and outbreaks in travellers’ and crew onboard cruise ships.

Results: Between 2017 to 2024, via the Tourism module on THiS, over 1000 tourism entities have been registered with over 3800 cases reported, resulting in 1058 identified syndromic cases. These cases generated 48 Alerts with over 93% being responded to within 24-hours of notification. With the MG module, 32 MG sites were registered across 7 MS. During the events, 177 cases were reported on the field with 19 syndromic cases identified and two alerts generated. From 2021-2024, 1889 CVSS alerts were sent to Member States notifying them at least 24hrs in advance of elevated numbers of ill passengers coming to their country.

Conclusion: Early detection and response to any communicable disease threat are critical. Electronic systems facilitate easier and faster data collection at the early stages of disease, increasing the likelihood of timely intervention. With the application of key underlying characteristics of a high functioning public health surveillance system, the THiS platform and CVSS aim to improve overall population health outcomes and reduce the impact of widespread disease transmission and the associated economic and reputational damage.