As part of its pro bono Health Corps initiative, IBM will collaborate with public health agencies to apply its data analytic capabilities to address mosquito-borne diseases in Taiwan and Panama.
In Taiwan, IBM will work with the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control to create computer models that predict the impact of interventions to fight dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease that has been a major cause of death in the tropics and subtropics. The ultimate goal is to help Taiwanese agencies make more informed decisions about dengue fever prevention.
In Panama, IBM has joined forces with the Gorgas Memorial Institute to create a surveillance system. With a mobile app, public health field investigators are able to collect timely and location-focused data on disease outbreaks and mosquito breeding sites, which they can relay to researchers, health officials and policy makers in the country's Ministry of Health.