Conference Abstract | Volume 9 (ConfPro8): Abstract 59 | Published: 09 Oct 2026
James Kofi Avi1, &, Anthony Zunuo Dongdem1, Chrysantus Kubio1,2
1Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Fred Newton Binka School of Public Health, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ghana, 2Ghana Health Service, Northern Regional Health Directorate, Tamale, Ghana
&Corresponding author: James Kofi Avi, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Fred Newton Binka School of Public Health, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ghana, Email: jaavik82@gmail.com
Received: 11 Mar 2026, Accepted: 30 Aug 2026, Published: 09 Oct 2026
Domain: Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: Acute flaccid paralysis, polio surveillance, surveillance system evaluation, Ghana
©James Kofi Avi et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: James Kofi Avi et al., Acute flaccid paralysis surveillance system evaluation in the Adentan Municipality of the Greater Accra Region, Ghana, 2025. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2026;9(ConfPro8):59. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO8-0059
Acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance is an important component of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and helps identify poliovirus in children under 15 years of age. In Ghana, it is implemented through the IDSR system, which includes reporting, stool sample collection, and laboratory confirmation. Wild poliovirus is not present in Ghana, however, there is a risk of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2). AFP surveillance in Adentan Municipality was assessed to identify areas for improvement and to evaluate its usefulness and key attributes, such as simplicity, flexibility, sensitivity, data quality, and timeliness.
A cross-sectional evaluation was conducted using CDC’s updated guidelines and WHO performance standards for AFP surveillance. Data from 2020–2024 were drawn from SORMAS, structured checklists, and interviews with key health staff. Analyses were conducted in Excel and Stata v17, with findings presented using tables, graphs, and charts.
Twenty-four surveillance stakeholders participated in the evaluation. The system demonstrated strong stability (84.7%) and moderate simplicity (62.1%). However, only 42% of facilities had complete AFP toolkits, and 60% had inadequate staff training. Timely reporting and 60-day follow-up were inconsistent. GPS coordinates were documented in just 13.5% of cases in the region, limiting geospatial analysis. All districts, including Adentan, had AFP cases, indicating widespread coverage. The predictive value was 0.0 because no lab-confirmed AFP cases were available.
The Adentan AFP surveillance system is operationally stable and structurally sound, but faces challenges in data completeness, sensitivity, and timeliness. The system needs targeted staff training, improved logistics for specimen collection, enforcement of GPS documentation, and the use of feedback dashboards to improve performance. These actions are vital to strengthen early detection and rapid response capacity in support of polio eradication goals.
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