Recent research has shown that over 60% of diseases in human originated from Animals. In a quest to stop anymore spill over of diseases from animals to humans, the Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS) together with Washington State University (WSU) and Food Animal Organization (FAO) has been piloting the Kenya Livestock and Wildlife Syndromic Surveillance (KLWSS) system, a near real time electronic surveillance system developed to improve early detection of outbreaks. Forty eight (48) Field Officers from Kilifi and Kwale counties among them Dr. Janerose Mutura from ANAW attended the training on the KLWSS system held at Vacani Resort in Voi from 12th-15th June 2018.Syndromic surveillance is the process of collecting, analyzing and interpreting health related data to detect human or veterinary public health events for rapid intervention. The objective is to identify illness clusters early before diagnoses are confirmed to mobilize rapid response and to detect zoonotic diseases before spill over to human populations.
This will be achieved using an electronic data collection tool, the Kenya Animal Bio-surveillance System (KABS), a unique mobile application that allows Surveillance Officers to enter data on both healthy and sick animals into the system directly from the field using a standardized surveillance form designed for mobile devices. The field officers included government veterinarians, animal health assistants and private practitioners. Facilitators were from the DVS, WSU and FAO.
The sessions involved walking the participants through the basics of the surveillance system and the need for a near real time reporting system. Participants were also able to download the application onto their phones and then trained on how to use it through a practical session carried out in a farm close to the training venue. The surveillance system has already been rolled out in five (5) counties and to the Kenya Wildlife Service.