IDAIR Pathfinder
.png)
Since 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, governments around the world have had to design, develop, and deploy disease prevention and control strategies at unprecedented scale and speed. While COVID has been (among other things) a wake-up call, it has also revealed many complexities in managing population health.
Real Time Epidemiology: IDAIR Pathfinder
Epidemiology and tracing tools are key to keeping populations safe in the face of contagious diseases. Yet the efficacy of these technology tools relies on a very human factor: trust in their security when it comes to personal data.
The challenge: Ensuring data security and community adoption of epidemiology tool
Ensuring that this security is both trustworthy and trusted requires different approaches depending on the population context and must be understood and adapted accordingly. In Sub-Saharan Africa, facing COVID and other epidemic outbreaks such as Ebola, successful implementation of epidemiological tools requires understanding of the entire context.
Our adapted solution: Notification App with AI to predict epidemics
The project aims to develop a digitally scalable notification solution with the long-term goal to support national health systems. Critical focuses are: data privacy, relevant regulation compliance, interoperability across borders, and for the development of epidemiological models. We will use real-time data integration and artificial intelligence (AI) to further predict pandemic spread.
We will develop:
- A privacy-engineering toolset tailored to the needs of epidemiologists to enable the systematic design of digital real-time epidemiology tools respectful of human rights.
- New computing architectures to support real-time epidemiology.
- Secure radio protocols and low-cost devices that can implement emerging epidemiology policies in a decentralized manner at large scale.
- Open implementation of all protocols to further increase the reach of low-cost hardware helping with accessibility in LMICs.
Credits Main Image: Adobe, ICRC
Nathalie holds an M.A. in Social Sciences. She has a rich background in humanitarian work and social impact projects, working with NGOs and international organizations. She has led diverse teams across Sub-Saharan Africa, the Balkans, Central America, and Switzerland, fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration and building cross-cultural partnerships to develop impactful solutions that advance societal progress. Her core areas of expertise include post-crisis recovery, gender-based violence, and forced migration.In her previous roles, Nathalie worked with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Geneva on anti-human trafficking interventions and served as an independent consultant specialising in strategic planning for humanitarian initiatives. She also contributed to socio-economic integration programs for refugees in Switzerland. Nathalie joined EssentialTech in 2021 as Head of Stakeholder relations and Fundraising before taking the Head of the Sustainable Development Division in 2023, Nathalie leads interdisciplinary innovation projects that strategically leverage technology to develop sustainable solutions for vulnerable communities. Her work focuses notably on improving access to essential health services, including neonatal care, oxygen therapy,and assistive devices, while empowering healthcare professionals and institutions in low-resource settings.
SmartCervix
.png)
BmAi
