Continuous Artificial Prediction Markets as a Syndromic Surveillance Technique

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) [World Health Organization, 2013], the United Nations directing and coordinating health authority, public health surveillance is: The continuous, systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of health-related data needed for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health practice. Public health surveillance practice has evolved over time. Although it was limited to pen and paper at the beginning of 20th century, it is now facilitated by huge advances in informatics. Information technology enhancements have changed the traditional approaches of capturing, storing, sharing and analysing of data and resulted efficient and reliable health surveillance techniques [Lombardo and Buckeridge, 2007]. The main objective and challenge of a health surveillance system is the earliest possible detection of a disease outbreak within a society for the purpose of protecting community health. In the past, before the widespread deployment of computers, health surveillance was based on reports received from medical care centres and laboratories.