The Guardians of Health strategy is a tool developed with a focus on participatory surveillance, a method in which the population voluntarily reports their health status, actively taking part in the surveillance process.

These records are compiled and processed to assess the incidence of specific symptoms and diseases, thereby contributing to the construction of epidemiological scenarios.

The Guardians of Health App

The Guardians of Health

The Guardians of Health app began as a participatory-surveillance tool developed by the Brazilian Ministry of Health in 2007 to monitor large-scale events in Brazil, and it was deployed during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In 2016, the app was used again at the Rio de Janeiro Olympic and Paralympic Games through a partnership between the Skoll Global Threats Fund (SGTF), the Ministry of Health, the startup Epitrack, and ProEpi. Since then, we’ve continued to refine and expand the app, taking it to Colombia for the Pope’s visit.

In 2020, in collaboration with the Health Situation Room at the University of Brasília, we updated the tool with a focus on COVID-19. It has since been adopted by organizations like the University of Brasília. The app is open to the entire community, and Brasília students earn four elective credits to encourage participation.

By March 2021, Guardians of Health had amassed 26,000 registered users. Today, our partnership with the Health Situation Room is dedicated to developing a new feature, this time aimed at institutional active surveillance.

History

2007

The Guardians of Health app launched as a participatory-surveillance tool developed by the Brazilian Ministry of Health to monitor large-scale events in Brazil.

2014

Deployed during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

2016

Used again at the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games through a partnership between the Skoll Global Threats Fund (SGTF), the Brazilian Ministry of Health, the startup Epitrack, and ProEpi. Since then, it has been continuously refined and expanded, most recently deployed in Colombia during the Pope’s visit.

2017

From June 28–30, Brasília hosted the 15th National Exhibition of Successful Experiences in Epidemiology, Prevention and Disease Control (15th Expoepi), where a new beta version of the Guardians of Health app was unveiled. The Guardians booth registered 346 professionals interested in testing the beta release.

2020

In collaboration with the Brazilian Association of Field Epidemiology Professionals (ProEpi) and the Health Situation Room at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Brasília (SDS/UnB), the app was updated for COVID-19 response. It is available free on Android and iOS.

The system runs on Go.Data software and can be customized as a collaborative project for other institutions. To date, the app has reached over 31,000 users and recorded nearly 4 million reports since June 2020.

2022

In 2022, in partnership with the Ceará State Health Secretariat, the app was deployed for a mass event at the Expocrato festival in Crato, Ceará. The focus was on detecting, monitoring, and controlling syndromes during the festival via municipal active surveillance, using the Guardians of Health (GdS) app to gather information on the health status of attendees and staff.

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2023-Present

In 2023, in collaboration with ProEpi, the Health Situation Room at the University of Brasília (SDS UnB), the National Institute of Public Health of Cabo Verde, and the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST), the tool was adapted to include a new community-based event surveillance module supported by local community leaders.

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