Annual Report 2023-2024

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Download Annual Report 2021-22

On-going research projects

The Foundation encourages submission of research projects leveraging on the GIHSN database. Projects are reviewed by the Independent Scientific Committee of the GIHSN and the Foundation. If project is approved, the research team can perform analyses on the data. Data access (anonymised and/or aggregated data only) is granted through a dedicated interface. The data catalogue is available on the platform, together with sites description. This provides a high-level fingerprinting of the GIHSN database and allows researchers to assess the feasibility of their research question. GIHSN sites are informed upfront of any analysis, and they have the possibility to opt out.

On-going research activities associated with the GIHSN include the following:

Experience of older adults hospitalized with influenza and acute respiratory illness in relation to function in Activities of Daily Living: a report from the GIHSN. Project submitted by: Melissa K Andrew, Canadian Serious Outcomes Surveillance Network, Halifax, Canada. 2023

Guidelines for handling missing data in the GIHSN dataset. Project submitted by: Marta Nunes, Center of Excellence in respiratory Pathogens (CERP), University of Lyon I, France. 2024

Analysis of RSV-confirm cases submitted to GIHSN from 2012 to 2023. Project submitted by: Marta Nunes, Center of Excellence in respiratory Pathogens (CERP), University of Lyon I, France. 2024

GISAID FluCluster-AI – Innovations in virus transmission cluster analysis. Project submitted by: Sebastian Maurer-Stroh, GISAID. 2024

Influenza severity in young, hospitalized children by country income level. Project submitted by: Cécile Viboud, National Institutes of Health, US. 2024

Trends in influenza antiviral use among hospitalized influenza cases: real-world evidence from a global perspective. Project submitted by: Sandra S Chaves, The Foundation for Influenza Epidemiology. 2024 Early antiviral treatment can reduce influenza-associated complications including lower respiratory tract infections and death in hospitalized patients. In the US, antivirals are recommended for all hospitalized patients with suspected or confirmed influenza. Recommendation policies for other parts of the world may differ slightly from that in the US but mostly support the use of antivirals, and clinicians can consider treatment for people at higher risk of severe disease from influenza empirically. This data should serve as a benchmark and could provide insight on the use of influenza antivirals before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) retrospective analysis leveraging GIHSN platform. Project submitted by: Miranda Delahoy, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2024 The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are working with GIHSN sites that have information on EV-D68 cases from the years before the COVID-19 pandemic for a retrospective investigation on epidemiological and clinical characteristics of cases. This initiative may set up the stage for a possible prospective surveillance of this viruses to be included in the network.

 

 GIHSN Database

During the past 12 years, a total of 197,694 patients hospitalized with respiratory illness have been enrolled, including 30,927 lab-confirmed influenza cases and 55,613 patients with other respiratory viruses.

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Interested in learning more about the GIHSN database? Contact us at contact@gihsnwp.impact-dev.tn

GIHSN GLOBAL ANNUAL MEETING 2024::25-26 November 2024, Domaine de Châteauneuf, France

The GIHSN held its 12th Annual Meeting on November 24-26th, 2024, at Domaine de Châteauneuf, South of France. It has been a great opportunity to meet and discuss the challenges of respiratory virus surveillance with GIHSN sites, epidemiologists, virologists, clinicians and international public health experts, including representatives from the World Health Organization, the UK Health Security Agency, the French ANRS-MIE and the US Centers for Disease Control and prevention.

16-17 November 2023 - WHO HQ


Position statement 2024

The COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed weaknesses in disease surveillance and highlighted the importance of strategic and targeted investments for optimal response.  Ensuring laboratories and clinics are connected and have good geographic representativeness is essential if we are to understand the public health relevance of the circulating pathogens.

Public health is a collective responsibility.  The role of the industry however is often perceived as constrained to development of countermeasures, manufacturing or as a transactional partner, leading to missed opportunities for joint investments. The Pandemic Accord currently under discussion offers an opportunity to build resilient ecosystems for pandemic preparedness, based on a true collaborative model leveraging both industry catalytic funding and in-kind contributions. Robust infectious disease surveillance systems constitute a shared objective for both public and private sectors. In addition to pandemic preparedness objectives, expanding surveillance data availability is critical to support and incentivize R&D for countermeasures given the high investment risks associated.

There is a unanimous call to improve surveillance, but existing systems may experience capacity constraints in case of scope expansion or surge in demand. Collaboration with additional types of surveillance systems, particularly agile ones, can enhance response and effectiveness, in line with the WHO Mosaic Respiratory Surveillance Framework.  The Foundation for Influenza Epidemiology (FIE) offers the opportunity to join forces and to contribute to a more comprehensive respiratory virus surveillance system by scaling up the existing Global Influenza Hospital Surveillance Network (GIHSN).

The GIHSN, initially started with a focus on influenza, has now expanded to become the largest global hospital network documenting respiratory viruses’ circulation and burden (including 100 hospitals in 20+ countries so far). It works in close collaboration with WHO. It is co-funded by local health systems (relying on existing infrastructures) and the FIE which provides catalytic grants from the private sector[1]. This federated network relies on an agile and empowered community of surveillance sites which remain owners of the data they generate, get access to capacity building, funding, and high quality cross-country scientific exchanges. The FIE has demonstrated over more than 10 years solid governance and transparency, allowing to attract an operating budget of more than 2.5M$ per year so far. More than 85% of the budget is allocated at country level for data collection. To date, more than 150,000 hospitalized patients have been screened by the network.

The GIHSN offers critical capabilities in support of future needs and incentives to engage industry. To build the mutual trust needed for the Pandemic Accord, FIE is calling for private sector, multilaterals, member states and civil society to join forces to scale up the GIHSN. We trust that the proof of concept of this newly called Global Catalytic Fund for Surveillance could be achieved in 3 years with a yearly operating budget of 10M$ only.

Cedric MAHE, PhD
President, Foundation for Influenza Epidemiology
www.gihsn.org


[1] Donors currently include Sanofi, CSL Seqirus, Abbott and Pfizer

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