ArticleJMIR mHealth and uHealth2014
Real-time monitoring of school absenteeism to enhance disease surveillance: a pilot study of a mobile electronic reporting system.
Article in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Monitoring School Absenteeism for Influenza-Like Illness Surveillance: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2023Pooled it
- Cluster Detection Mechanisms for Syndromic Surveillance Systems: Systematic Review and Framework Development.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2020Pooled it
- Improving a microbial risk assessment tool with direct feedback from school health staff.Microbial risk analysis · 2025Article
- Evaluation of Kindergarten Through Grade 12 All-Cause Absenteeism Data as an Indicator and Predictor of Respiratory Disease, 2018-2022.Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974) · 2025Article
- School-level data on COVID-19 cases, quarantines, and student absenteeism during the COVID-19 pandemic: understanding missingness.American journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- Pilot Influenza Syndromic Surveillance System Based on Absenteeism and Temperature in China: Development and Usability Study.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2022Article
- A Mobile App and Dashboard for Early Detection of Infectious Disease Outbreaks: Development Study.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2021Article
- A Smart Card-Based Electronic School Absenteeism System for Influenza-Like Illness Surveillance in Hong Kong: Design, Implementation, and Feasibility Assessment.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2017Article
- Dengue Contingency Planning: From Research to Policy and Practice.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSchool absenteeism is a common source of data used in syndromic surveillance, which can eventually be used for early outbreak detection. However, the absenteeism reporting system in most schools, especially in developing countries, relies on a paper-based method that limits its use for disease surveillance or outbreak detection.
objectiveThe objective of this study was to develop an electronic real-time reporting system on school absenteeism for syndromic surveillance.
methodsAn electronic (Web-based) school absenteeism reporting system was developed to embed it within the normal routine process of absenteeism reporting. This electronic system allowed teachers to update students' attendance status via mobile tablets. The data from all classes and schools were then automatically sent to a centralized database for further analysis and presentation, and for monitoring temporal and spatial patterns of absent students. In addition, the system also had a disease investigation module, which provided a link between absenteeism data from schools and local health centers, to investigate causes of fever among sick students.
resultsThe electronic school absenteeism reporting system was implemented in 7 primary schools in Bangkok, Thailand, with total participation of approximately 5000 students. During May-October 2012 (first semester), the percentage of absentees varied between 1% and 10%. The peak of school absenteeism (sick leave) was observed between July and September 2012, which coincided with the peak of dengue cases in children aged 6-12 years being reported to the disease surveillance system.
conclusionsThe timeliness of a reporting system is a critical function in any surveillance system. Web-based application and mobile technology can potentially enhance the use of school absenteeism data for syndromic surveillance and outbreak detection. This study presents the factors that determine the implementation success of this reporting system.
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