EARLY HEALTH WARNING SYSTEM
Context
- Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) is developing an ‘Early Health Warning System’ which is expected to forecast the possibility of disease outbreaks in the country.
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- The model being developed is based on the relationship between weather changes and incidence.
- There are certain diseases where weather patterns play a crucial role. Such as malaria, for which particular temperatures and rainfall patterns can approximately predict whether an area is likely to have an outbreak with fairly reasonable accuracy.
- It is expected to predict outbreaks of vector-borne diseases, particularly malaria and diarrhoea. Subsequently, it is likely to monitor non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as well. Vector-borne diseases have direct links to weather patterns.
- Such a system, when deployed, would give local authorities ample time to prepare.