Structure, function and performance of Early Warning Alert and Response Network (EWARN) in emergencies in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Autor:	Mala P; World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. Electronic address: malap@who.int., Abubakar A; WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt., Takeuchi A; WHO Country Office, Syria., Buliva E; WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt., Husain F; Centres for Communicable Disease Control, USA., Malik MR; WHO Somalia Liaison Office, Kenya., Tayyab M; WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt., Elnoserry S; WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases [Int J Infect Dis] 2021 Apr; Vol. 105, pp. 194-198. Date of Electronic Publication: 2021 Feb 05.
DOI:	10.1016/j.ijid.2021.02.002
Abstrakt:	Introduction: The Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) has experienced several protracted humanitarian crises. The affected population are served by eight Early Warning Alert and Response Network (EWARN) systems for outbreak detection and response. This study aimed to compare structure, function and performance of the systems' adherence to current guidance, and noted emerging lessons. Methods: This study included a review of published and unpublished literature, a structured survey and interviews. Results: Findings showed that all systems adhered to basic EWARN structure. Four of eight systems had electronic platforms, while one was implementing one. Regarding key EWARN function of outbreak detection: of the 35 health conditions, 26 were communicable diseases and nine were non-communicable; two systems focused on epidemic-prone diseases. Half the systems achieved ≥60% population coverage, five achieved ≥80% reporting timeliness, six achieved ≥80% reporting completeness, and seven achieved verification of ≥80% of alerts of suspected outbreaks. Conclusion: The findings showed that the systems followed the EWARN structure, while increasing adoption of electronic platforms. Performance, including timeliness and completeness of reporting, and timely verification of alerts were optimal for most of the systems. However, population coverage was low for most of the systems, and the EWARN's primary focus of outbreak detection was undermined by the increasing number of non-epidemic diseases. (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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