The Ohio State University Global One Health initiative (GOHi) is currently working with the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Ethiopia to improve Acute Febrile Illness (AFI) surveillance in Ethiopia. AFI is a common clinical syndrome that can be caused by various pathogens, ranging from simple treatable and vaccine-preventable infectious agents to newly emerging pathogens with pandemic potential. The capacity to investigate the causative pathogen of AFIs is limited in low- and middle-income countries, which makes patient management more difficult.
GOHi’s AFI surveillance project works towards understanding the causes of AFI at six hospitals – Jinka Hospital, Jimma University Hospital, Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Saint Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College and University of Gondar Specialized Hospital. This project aims to strengthen surveillance and laboratory detection capacity for a broad range of pathogens causing AFI in Ethiopia and inform the public on the magnitude, risks and appropriate preventive and control measures.
GOHi, EPHI and the CDC Ethiopia conducted a review of these hospitals in October to ensure adherence to AFI surveillance protocol, identify potential gaps or challenges, provide guidance and support to the facility staff and ensure the reliability and quality of the collected data. The team discussed its findings with facility leaders and is working to improve the overall AFI surveillance in Ethiopia.