Maldives has been effectively using Go.Data, a WHO software tool for outbreak investigation and contact tracing, in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The platform, which can be used in both online and offline settings, is user friendly, has visual dashboards for chain of transmission and offers data transfer security. It has now been customized for use in Maldives by adding features such as atolls and islands to the database. It is the core tool being used by National Emergencies Operations Centre for contact tracing, data entry and maintenance as well as the generation of data and projections. It is the principle tracing mechanism for COVID19 in the country and is also available as a mobile app.
Photo credit: WHO Maldives
“Adoption of Go.Data in Maldives has been instrumental in effective initial outbreak investigation and management. Its ability to manage large amount of data, case investigations, contact follow-ups and visualization of chains of transmission helped us to make crucial public health decisions for containing the outbreak-. Go.Data is certainly a very useful tool,” said Mr Ibrahim Nishan Ahmed, Deputy Director General, Health Protection Agency.
The initiative for getting the tool to the country was taken by the Maldives government when it approached WHO for support on the matter, shortly after the first COVID-19 case was recorded. Thereafter, WHO Maldives coordinated with South East Asia Regional Office and the Data and Surveillance team of WHO Health Emergencies Programme (WHE), shared all queries and information and assisted in formation of a team for data collection and entry.
“I remember Ministry of Health colleagues enquiring with me for an appropriate tool for contact tracing and related data management. Given that Maldives has the highest internet and smart phone penetration in South East Asia, it was natural for me to recommend a digital tool. WHO is honoured to have supported critical area of contact tracing; an important pillar of COVID-19 control and response,” said Dr Arvind Mathur, WHO Representative in the Maldives.
Photo credit: WHO Maldives
“My team coordinated with SEARO WHE team, which facilitated interactions with global and regional experts on Go.Data platform. Within a week of the request, the Maldives team was able to set up a go.data link and go live,” Dr Mathur added.
WHO and WHE teams also supported Maldives in training the staff involved in the project and continues to do so via a mobile phone app SLACK, where the local teams as well as the WHO headquarters and SEARO teams exchange queries and messages as well as request for support such as trouble shooting issues.
Go.Data is the initiative of a group of public health partners and is managed by the Global Outbreak and Response Network, coordinated by WHO. The tool focuses on the core data record of a case, a set of contacts linked to that case and a set of follow-up records created for each contact. In other words, the tool has strengthened follow-up of cases and contacts during outbreaks involving human to human transmission of disease.
Photo credit: WHO Maldives
Go.Data was successfully used by WHO in Africa during the Ebola outbreak for speeding up detection and slowing down Ebola and for epidemiologists to control disease outbreak in the Rohingya camps.