The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), in collaboration with information and communication technology group BCX, has developed an automated platform that digitalises the data from wastewater testing for the early detection of the Covid-19 virus.

Early detection of increased infection can be the key to managing the spread of the virus as medical experts try to manage South Africa’s fifth wave of infection.

“An intelligent dashboard that digitalises and automatically synchronises data on SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater provides a single view of trends and changes how the disease can be tracked and treated,” says BCX CEO Jonas Bogoshi, noting that global experience suggests that the levels of the virus in wastewater mirror the levels of infection in the immediate community.

Wastewater is considered a reliable metric for measuring Covid-19 infections as people, regardless of whether they are symptomatic or asymptomatic, shed the virus in their waste, enabling researchers to track trends and pinpoint areas that are experiencing an upsurge in infections.

This provides health decision-makers with up-to-date scientific insights, empowering them to make smart and prompt decisions, says Bogoshi.

The NICD started a process of testing wastewater that recently detected the new Omicron subvariant BA.4 in wastewater in south-western Johannesburg.

Sustained and new increases in the levels of SARS-CoV-2 had also been seen in wastewater treatment plants in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State, the Western Cape, the Northern Cape and the North West.

“BCX’s intelligent, publicly accessible dashboard centralises the data that can effectively track SARS-CoV-2 wastewater levels nationally,” says Bogoshi, He adds that the smart insights dashboard pulls essential health and virus data streams together into a cohesive platform to deliver insights that are relevant and essential in managing infections.

The platform, which is also designed to be public-facing and accessible, is easy to navigate and automates the process, thus creating a visual of the viral load for each community.

“It not only allows for members of the public to immediately assess the risk factors in their region, but for policy and healthcare decision-makers to develop informed strategies to combat, or prepare for, potential outbreaks in specific areas.”

Using digital skills from BCX EXA, the platform is Web-based and granular enough that anyone can easily understand the extent of infection in their suburb or district, the BCX CEO explains.

“The use of intuitive technology in this unique way is a compelling glimpse of what is possible when we apply innovation, science and human ingenuity to a very real problem that affects all South Africans.

“BCX is proud to partner with the NICD on tracking and monitoring the spread of the Covid-19 virus across the nation and to identify new variants,” Bogoshi concludes.