Digital epidemiology and global health security; an interdisciplinary conversation

Abstract

Contemporary infectious disease surveillance systems aim to employ the speed and scope of big data in an attempt to provide global health security. Both shifts - the perception of health problems through the framework of global health security and the corresponding technological approaches – imply epistemological changes, methodological ambivalences as well as manifold societal effects. Bringing current findings from social sciences and public health praxis into a dialogue, this conversation style contribution points out several broader implications of changing disease surveillance. The conversation covers epidemiological issues such as the shift from expert knowledge to algorithmic knowledge, the securitization of global health, and the construction of new kinds of threats. Those developments are detailed and discussed in their impacts for health provision in a broader sense.

Digital data-based strategies: A novel form of better understanding COVID-19 pandemic and international scientific collaboration

“…Finally, we use a graphical abstract to summarize the current relationship between international cooperation and COVID-19 in this article ( Fig 5 ), so as to provide a reference for us to better understand the relationship between them. In summary, novel techniques to the pandemic threats via these digital data-based strategies seem to emerge epistemological shifts, as well as methodological changes and multiple social and political influences [ 10 ]. The objective of this work is to highlight the potential gains and benefits yielded by new data sources and digital processing techniques, and finally help all nations respond to the COVID-19 or the preempt looming pandemic.…”

“…Information and truths about the world and the contingent threats of infectious disease are increasingly extracted in the forms of digital signals and signs, rather than being generated from statistical processes only through human analysis [ 10 ]. Therefore, in this article, we took full advantage of digital data-based strategies, such as big data analysis and visualization, algorithmic techniques, scientometrics and digital epidemiology to produce meaningful and advanced insights into imbalance between COVID-19 and international collaboration, as well as revealed possible influencing factors.…”

COVID-19 and privacy in the European Union: A legal perspective on contact tracing

“…The securitization of public health has introduced more enhanced surveillance techniques into infectious disease responses (Eckmanns et al, 2019). The Health Threats Decision is an example of this as it bridges the policy fields of health and security.…”

“…Public health policy and national security policy have in common that they require the balancing of the rights of the public against the rights of the individual (Dijkstra & de Ruijter, 2017). Furthermore, often public health, like national security, can only effectively be protected when individuals sacrifice some of their freedom (Eckmanns et al, 2019;Sinha, 2013). In this regard, whether we like it or not, the character of the measure of contact tracing is strongly reminiscent of surveillance actions taken in light of national security issues: The privacy of individuals is limited for the purpose of the protection of a greater part of the population (van Kolfschooten, 2019).…”

NATO and evidence-based military and disaster medicine: case for Vigorous Warrior Live Exercise Series

“…Global health security is defined as the activities required to minimize the danger and impact of acute public health events that endanger the collective health of populations and communities across geographical regions and boundaries (12). Definitions, however, broadly focus on preventing infectious diseases originating in or affecting the Global South from spreading to the Global North or further across the South (16). Such a view of global health security is very narrow and limiting.…”