Consultation for supporting AMR surveillance through electronic data centralization

As part of the WHO South-East Asia (SEA) Region’s efforts at prioritizing antimicrobial resistance and surveillance, several options have been considered for strengthening AMR surveillance using an information technology (IT) architecture. An IT-enabled AMR surveillance system will help efficiently monitor and study the emergence of resistant genes and in systems to detect outbreaks due to resistant bacteria.

IT platforms that have been used in disease surveillance range from mobile-based technologies and web-based tools to sophisticated data analytics and artificial intelligence. However inspite of IT platforms being available when it comes to data centralization, there isn’t enough clarity around how data is to be collected, stored, transmitted and analyzed. Several open-source platforms exist. There is WHONET which is already available and the Japan Nosocomial Infections Surveillance (JANIS) that is being studied to discuss the feasibility of roll-out amongst the Member States in the Region, including assessing the status of technical and technological readiness.

A two-day informal consultation was held on 20-21 February 2018 in New Delhi with participation from JANIS, WHONET, focal points of select Southeast Asia Region (SEAR) countries, and government representatives looking after AMR to explore interest among Member States in data centralization, including outputs and issues related to data security and confidentiality and discuss feasibility with respect to support IT infrastructure, human resource availability and capacity/training needs

Recommendations for a roadmap for implementing data centralization pilots suggested using an IT-enabled platform for centralizing AMR surveillance and for data centralization efforts to be accompanied by the development of surveillance guidelines at the national level in line with international standards (GLASS). The group agreed upon finalizing a plan for an inter-country review of requirements and the need for an IT-based surveillance system for AMR.