DESIGNING A VISUAL MAPPING SOLUTION FOR REAL-TIME REPORTING AND MONITORING OF DENGUE INCIDENTS IN METRO MANILA

The Dengue Fever is a worldwide-known disease caused by the dengue virus which is transmitted by a female Aedes mosquito. The disease caused outbreaks in different parts of the world but mainly in tropical and subtropical climates. This disease spread as the carriers multiply. Mosquitoes breed in places like stagnant water and old tires which is common in urban areas. The 1981 Cuba Outbreak is world's biggest known epidemic in which 116,000 has been hospitalized because of dengue. 10,000 people are hospitalized per day in that outbreak; this is how fast the disease can spread. Currently, there is no anti-viral medicine for the disease but it can be cured with the help of anti-pyretic. There is a severe case of dengue fever called dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). In this case, more supportive treatments are required like fluid replacement in order to prevent shock in patients which can lead to death. Dengue is also prevalent here in the Philippines because it is also has a tropical climate. In the year 2010, 173,032 dengue cases have been reported. Since government officials and hospitals can only do so much, participation from major stakeholders is needed. Aedes Watch is an online system designed and carefully planned to raise awareness and provides education about dengue to the public. The project test bed had focused on two hospitals in Quezon City. The main feature of the system is the Dengue Map which provides a map of an area filled with markers in which a dengue case has been reported. The system collaborates with the hospitals to provide an accurate data. Every time there is a patient with dengue admitted to a hospital, the medical technicians of the participating hospital will input data into the system; most importantly the dengue virus type, the assumed place where the infected bite occurred, and the assumed bitten date. After inputting these data, a marker will automatically be plotted into the map based from the given information. Aside from that, the system provides reports and chart to help in decision making, facts and tips about dengue to educate the people, and a forecasting module which makes use of the SARIMA model. The system also provides real-time updates through twitter and also automated text messaging to the doctors and government officials once an area reached an alarming number of dengue cases. The system provides a tool that provides real- time updates about dengue. With proper control and monitoring, dengue outbreaks can be prevented with the help of this tool. The system proves that mapping is an excellent analytical tool. The map provides a visualization of data that can easily in interpreted by decision makers to help them in analyzing the dengue situation. The system helps in handling dengue better here in our country. With the tracking of dengue incidents, incoming possible outbreaks can now be detected and mitigated. Since the data in the system are real-time and accurate, major stakeholders can monitor the dengue situation and react quickly and execute their dengue drives. It also raises the awareness of the public about their surroundings. With that, hopefully the public will collaborate as well to fight dengue here in our country.