Scoping review on digital community-based surveillance

Project details

Year: 2025

Client: World Bank Group

Objectives:

The primary goal of this project was to support the Joint Learning Network (JLN) and its member countries in leveraging digital tools to strengthen Community-Based Surveillance (CBS). Specifically, the project aimed to map existing digital technologies used for community-based surveillance globally and synthesize available evidence on their effectiveness.

Deliverables:

Scoping review report and its evidence tables providing:

  • a description of 40 digital technologies used for CBS;
  • a synthesis of assessment results on the identified technologies,
  • a summary of identified recommendations to develop or implement digital technologies for CBS.

Performed activities

This rapid scoping review was conducted to map digital technologies used to collect or manage information at the community level for public health surveillance purposes. It was based on the three following research questions:

  • Which digital technologies are available to improve the quality, timeliness or coverage of data captured by individuals not part of the formal health or public health system for public health surveillance purposes?
  • What evidence exists on the effectiveness of these digital technologies?
  • Which recommendations are available in published guidance from international global health stakeholders to develop, implement or operate such digital technologies?

As a first step, we developed a detailed review protocol to ensure a rigorous and reproducible scoping review methodology.

Through the search of five bibliographic databases, ten institutional websites and the worldwide web, we included 82 documents of interest. Forty digital technologies implemented across 45 countries were identified and described.

Number of identified technologies implemented by countries.

Figure 1. Number of identified technologies implemented by countries

Their scope and targeted users were related to the income level of the countries (figure 2).

Scope of digital technologies per start year of implementation by income level of implementation countries.

Figure 2. Scope of digital technologies per start year of implementation by income level of implementation countries

We assessed the available evidence on the effectiveness of such digital technologies and the availability of guidance for implementation, highlighting a lack of robust international recommendations.

The final output was a comprehensive review report to inform future development of practical guidance to support countries in leveraging digital technologies for community-based-surveillance.