IMPLEMENTATION OF ELECTRONIC-BASED MALARIA INFORMATION SYSTEM FOR EARLY CASE DETECTION AND INDIVIDUAL CASE MANAGEMENT IN PROVINCES ALONG THE THAI-MYANMAR AND CAMBODIAN BORDER

摘要

The Bureau of Vector-borne Diseases (BVBD), Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), Thailand, in collaboration with BIOPHICS have implemented an electronic Malaria Information System (eMIS) as part of a strategy to strengthen malaria surveillance system under the WHO initiative for containment of the anti-malarial drug resistance in South-east Asia. Originally, malaria surveillance system was paper-based, and only aggregated data were collected from down to top level. Data validation and data analysis recorded on the paper-based system was time- and labor- consuming. The eMIS has been designed to replace the existing paper-based system. In 2011, the eMIS system was initially implemented in 7 provinces along the Thai-Cambodia border; currently the system has been expanding to cover 22 malaria-endemic provinces along the international borders of Thailand. The main objective of this study was to demonstrate the eMIS' functionality on how well the system can report malaria situations after its implementation. The eMIS was designed as an evidence-based and near real-time system to capture data for early case detection, intensive case investigation, monitoring drug compliance and on/off-site tracking of malarial patients, as well as GIS mapping of villages where infected patients were located. Surveillance data obtained from the eMIS has been effectively used for monitoring anti-malarial resistance in the area. Results of this study show that application of information technology potentially helps to improve surveillance system in public health settings.