Digital Epidemiology in Saudi Arabia - Report Example

Abstract

The use of technology is very essential in the field of epidemiology. Incorporating technology in epidemiology makes it convenient to record, track and treat diseases that are likely to occur in particular areas at a faster rate. This paper will outline through analysis of the available literature on the gaps that exist in Saudi Arabia in the field of epidemiology. Different cases of disease occurrence will be reviewed and a connection to digital epidemiology or lack of one thereof. The resultant causes of spread of disease have been looked. Further a research analysis through a research survey method will be done on the lack of application of technology in epidemiology in Saudi Arabia. Methods of digital epidemiology will also be briefly analyzed. The study, from the statistical analysis, will look at how Saudi Arabia can incorporate technology in epidemiology.

• Digital epidemiology in Saudi Arabia

Introduction

The use of modern technology in public health has become a resourceful component in the improvement of health in modern technology. Digital technology has introduced a new form of public health in the recent years and hence increasing the response rate to epidemics and pandemics all over the world. As a result of modern digitalization, different branches of public health such as surveillance, laboratory testing and epidemiology have been enhanced. Digital epidemiology, for instance, has been a revolutionary tool in modern public health. With this regard therefore, this study aims to analyze how the use of digital epidemiology particularly in Saudi Arabia will improve public health performance. The paper will outline gaps that will be be identified during various epidemiological studies and establish how digital epidemiology will help bridge those gaps.

Literature review

Various studies have been carried out on the levels of disease outbreaks and spread in Saudi Arabia. Even with the development in technology and the endowment of resources, Saudi Arabia had not carried a national survey on anti-tuberculosis drug resistance until recently. In 2013, a study of the cases of TB was done nationally. In this study it was established that there resistance to TB was not a challenge in areas where the proportion of multidrug-TB among freshly diagnosed cases (Al-Hajoj et al., 2017). Due to the difficulty in establishing the trends in the level of resistance to the drug it was observed that there should be a repeat study or continuous surveillance in order to confirm the results of the findings. In this case, there seems to be a gap in the establishment of digital epidemiology that could aid in the surveillance of the cases of resistance of TB across the country without necessarily having a repeat study.

In 2013, a study cited that digital data can be used in more than four ways to analyze infectious-disease dynamics (Salathé et al., 2013). The study outlined early disease eruption detection, monitoring diseases, assessing health behaviors relevant to particular diseases, and provision of pre-outbreak testing methods as ways digital data can be used to study infectious-disease dynamics. It has however been observed through the literature reviewed that majority of these methods are not available in Saudi Arabia.

In another study carried out in Saudi Arabia to establish the occurrence and frequency of diabetes mellitus it was also observed that there was need to for further studies on the same subject. During the study that recorded higher rates of occurrence of diabetes among females and adolescent children, the urban areas were found to be having more prevalence of the disease than the rural areas (Alotaibi et al., 2017). It has been estimated that diabetes accounts for almost nine hundred million US dollars. With the increase in the occurrence of the disease, these costs are likely to increase. Having systems of surveying and detecting this disease before increased spreading can help reduce its occurrence and also reduce the high costs that are incurred in the country. These systems can be improved to the establishment of a digitalized epidemiology.

In addition to the two studies carried out above, the decreased use or lack of digital epidemiology has been observed in the study carried out in Saudi Arabia on the cases of Cutaneous Leishamaniasis, CL (Abuzaid et al., 2017). According to the findings of this research the actual occurrences and prevalence of CL in the country have not been recorded over the years. On the contrary it was proven that the disease prevalence had been underestimated over the years. In 2015, almost one thousand five hundred new cases of CL had been recorded. Yet still, these recordings were stated to be passive figures that were under-recorded.

Research Design and Methodology

The research design and methods that will be used in this paper is through a survey research approach. This paper will carry out a survey on the empirical data that will be collected in the past on digital epidemiology by public health institutions and other affiliated organizations to assist in coming up with appropriate measures that can be undertaken by Saudi Arabia in digital epidemiology. The main target population will be South Arabia. However, other samples from other regions will be used to establish the existing gap. The study will also carry out an experimental analysis on the available data in order to come up with a conclusion of the appropriate methods of digital epidemiology for Saudi Arabia.

Research Statistical Analysis

In 2011 a study carried out to find out in Saudi Arabia the occurrence of sickle cell disease, SCD showed that there is a high probability that the cases of prevalence of SCD may be underestimated (Jastaniah, 2011). The lack of information on the effect of the disease on death rates under-five years was also noted. In addition, the problem of reporting fewer patients than the actual figures in the field of leishmaniasis has been observed to be a major challenge facing correctness of the official surveillance statistics by the World Health Organization (WHO, 2007). Further, the report advised that there was need to carry out additional research on genomic, clinical and ecological modifiers of the disease. During the analysis of SCD occurrence, the study also documented that availability of documented data, which was absent, could assist in projecting the disease severity which could assist in diagnosing the disease in the early stages and hence administer treatment. Establishing effective and modernized systems through digital epidemiology in the screening of SCD as early as infancy can particularly be a measure of detecting and treating SCD.

There are a number of ways in which digital epidemiology can be incorporated in Saudi Arabia to improve digital epidemiology in Saudi Arabia. For example, remote sensing is being used in Nigeria as a method of eradicating polio (Eckhoff and Tatem, 2015). This digital epidemiology method has also been used to map the movement of populations that has helped in establishing the sources of disease outbreaks. On the other hand, the use of digital examination of genetic data has been instrumental in fighting diseases such as malaria. Studies have also proved that when systems are well established, technology can be reliable in improving public health (Vayena et al., 2015). In this regard, technology involving modeling has been successfully applied in ascertaining the possible interventions available for the HIV epidemic in South Africa.

Discussions

In the foregoing, the sampled case studies give evidence on the gaps that exist in the field of epidemiology in public health in Saudi Arabia. These gaps that relate to detecting of diseases will be bridged through an analysis of the integration of technology to various systems in in the country. Emphasis on the importance of digital epidemiology will be made. The use of epidemiology, the distribution, occurrence and origin of ailments in humans will be identified as has been observed in the past (Salathé et al., 2012). The use of various modes of technology in the recording and distribution of data can become an easy and effective way of monitoring the behavior and consequential global health. For instance, online news media, online medical databases, social networks and blogs will be resourceful sources of information in the field of public health globally. When used accurately, data generated from the web will be a source of information on disease outbreaks locally and related happenings globally.

Conclusion

It has been established that there are numerous methods that Saudi Arabia can use in surveillance, detection, and prevention of spreading of common outbreaks and diseases. Methods such as disease modeling will be used to come up with early interventions for diseases such as TB in anti-tuberculosis programs. In addition, digital data will help solve the traditional problem of missing data that has been seen in the cases of Cutaneous Leishamaniasis and sickle cell disease. Also, Saudi Arabia can improve the state of public health through the effective methods of data distribution in digitalization that will help avail data required for use in analysis and various interventions. In the management of emerging public health issues in the world today, digital technology will be important in enhancing the effectiveness of disease monitoring, intervention as well as investigating the effectiveness of the interventions that will be undertaken. If applied in Saudi Arabia, it will also assist in improving of the health status its citizens.