Progress in snakebite envenoming data reporting: challenges and opportunities

Overview

Background

Snakebite envenoming represents a critical yet neglected global health issue, disproportionately affecting impoverished, rural populations with limited medical infrastructure. Previously we summarized data collected by Ministries of Health in several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa that revealed significant heterogeneity in snakebite data reporting across that region. Since then, progress has continued with improvements in both granularity and extent of data reporting. This report highlights the changing data profile, challenges and opportunities presented as we continue efforts to centralize data collection and integrate snakebite envenoming into national surveillance.

Epidemiological data collection

Epidemiological data collection WHO provides countries with a snakebite reporting module within the WHO Integrated Data Platform (WIDP), a District Health Information System 2 (DHIS2) based platform that enables collection, analysis and sharing of data. Countries are provided annually with an Excel-based workbook data input form generated via WIDP for reporting of national and sub-national level data on snakebite cases and related deaths. Countries are encouraged to report data at administrative levels 1 (ADM1: region, state or province) and 2 (ADM2: district), depending on data availability. Data which countries agree to share publicly is published by WHO on our Snakebite Envenoming Information and Data Platform.

Conclusions

Four years after the introduction of WHO’s WIDP/ DHIS2 snakebite envenoming data collection tool, there are still gaps in reporting between and within countries.

Nevertheless, the number of countries contributing data has improved to almost 60%, and the granularity is improving. More work must be done to support countries with improved definitions of reporting characteristics, standardized reporting parameters and tools to validate reporting systems and ensure completeness, accuracy and collation of data to further improve the accuracy of burden estimates. In parallel, a deeper understanding of demography, social determinants of health care seeking behaviours, and barriers to treatment are urgently needed. Improving the reporting of snakebite-related fatalities and disabilities within health systems is crucial to understanding the true burden.8, 9 Many challenges still exist, but the improvements noted here reflect the commitment of a growing number of countries towards inclusion of snakebite envenoming in national health plans, programs and budgets.