The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) is calling on community members to participate in its countrywide respiratory health surveillance programme as the annual influenza season approaches.
CoughWatchSA is a web-based platform developed by the NICD, a division of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), which monitors respiratory illness trends in the community. The programme relies on volunteers who report their symptoms weekly for six months during the influenza season.
“We invite the public to support this programme by registering on the platform. This can be done by using the link provided: https://coughwatchsa.org.za/. We encourage people to share the link with friends and family to get more people involved. Your participation and outreach can make an impact on our understanding of respiratory health,” a spokesperson at the NICD said.
The 2025 CoughWatchSA season recorded 785 registered participants who submitted weekly reports. Reported symptoms tracked well with laboratory-confirmed influenza and SARS-CoV-2 cases, providing early warning of increases in respiratory illness in the community.
According to the symptomatic reports, 15% of participants reported a cough and fever. The most commonly reported symptoms were runny nose, sneezing, coughing, sore throat and fever.
Among symptomatic participants, 34% sought medical care, with most visiting a clinic or general practitioner. The majority of those who sought other forms of care went to a pharmacy or used home remedies.
The surveillance programme has been approved by the relevant ethics committees. The NICD said privacy and confidentiality remain paramount, with compliance to all data protection regulations, including the Protection of Personal Information Act.
The online survey does not replace existing mobile applications from the national department of health, but serves as an extension to support ongoing respiratory disease surveillance efforts.
