Tuberculosis prevention model in developing countries based on geospatial, cloud and web technologies

Abstract

Information is important when making decisions. Decisions which are based on gut feeling and made in the absence of evidence always tend to be less effective in most situations. This is also the case when it comes to Tuberculosis (TB) disease control and prevention intervention planning and implementation. The lack of evidence-based information upon which decisions for action to help with the prevention of spread of TB has proved to be less effective in the prevention of the disease as TB keeps spreading. The aim of this paper was to design and develop a prototype system that would provide TB program managers with information and tools which can be used to make decisions which can effectively influence the fight against the spread of TB through the application of cloud computing, geospatial data analysis and web technologies. The system would improve disease monitoring and tracking through the use of the identified technologies, by displaying the geographical distribution of TB cases in the communities on a mapping application as well as providing reports which TB program managers can use to make decisions when planning and implementing disease control and prevention activities.