Thousands help track dengue online

Surveillance system reviewed amid surge in cases

LAHORE:

A total of 77,000 Android phone users registered on a tracking system are monitoring and performing anti-dengue activities in Punjab.

The participants of a meeting were informed that an average of 650,000 daily activities were recorded through the system.

The performance of the Smart Dengue Monitoring System introduced in 2012 to measure the efficacy of the surveillance activities was reviewed in the meeting chaired by Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) Chairman Faisal Yousaf.

Also read: Dengue spreads unabated in Punjab

According to an official statement, the integrated platform was designed to empower various departments and city district governments across Punjab to monitor their day-to-day dengue surveillance activities using (Global Positioning System) GPS-enabled mobile phone applications.

The approach ensures that data is captured on the move and made available to the management in real time, facilitating swift and informed decision-making.

The system has been deployed for monitoring anti-dengue campaigns in all 36 districts of Punjab.

A Dengue Patient Reporting System is also operational in more than 2,000 government and private healthcare facilities and labs across Punjab.

Meanwhile, 171 new patients of dengue fever were confirmed by the Punjab health authorities during the past 24 hours, including 71 brought to hospitals in Lahore.

The total number of dengue patients registered in the province rose to 6,068, including 2,387 in Lahore.

The health authorities confirmed 11 new dengue patients in Faisalabad 15 in Gujranwala, 19 in Multan.

"At the moment, 137 patients of dengue fever are admitted to hospitals in Punjab, of whom 55 are under treatment in Lahore," Punjab Primary and Secondary Healthcare Secretary Ali Kan Khan said on Thursday.

Read more: Dengue surges in Punjab, 126 new cases reported

He said dengue surveillance activities were continuing in the province. However, he requested the public to cooperate with the government teams in surveillance and anti-dengue activities while focusing on cleanliness at home and in their localities.

During the past 24 hours, 652 outdoor sites in Lahore were identified with dengue larva, while 757 spots were sprayed to eradicate larvae. According to official data, fumigation was also done at 941 homes in the city, 608 of which had the larvae present.

Lahore Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa also requested the people inform the departments concerned about the need for fumigation at any spot.

Addressing the PITB meeting, Chairman Faisal Yousaf remarked, “PITB's Smart Dengue Monitoring System stands as a remarkable example of how technology can be harnessed to address pressing public health concerns efficiently and effectively.”

He said the initiative continued to evolve and with the system in place, public health authorities and stakeholders were better equipped to promptly respond to dengue outbreaks.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2023.