RabiesLaunchpad

Worldwide Veterinary Service

RabiesLaunchpad

Transforming global rabies control through software solutions

Dorset, UK

GBR

Nonprofit

Rabies is the world’s most fatal infectious disease, claiming 59,000 lives annually and costing US$8.6 billion in lost lives, livelihoods, and medical care. This neglected tropical disease disproportionately affects impoverished communities, where economic barriers prevent victims from seeking medical care. With death inevitable after symptoms appear, many cases go unreported. While 99% of human rabies cases come from dog bites, and research shows that vaccinating 70% of roaming dogs can eliminate the disease, existing prevention models are inaccessible to endemic countries due to limited resources and experience in conducting mass dog vaccination. The disease remains neglected and ignored in these regions, which typically rank lowest on the UN Human Development Report. Poor data quality regarding the burden of disease, size of dog populations, and program implementation is a significant barrier to advancing rabies control. Our technology addresses this by providing governments with a platform which incorporates global best practices in rabies surveillance, dog vaccination, and program evaluation into an accessible suite of tools that can be adapted to local requirements. Technology is making it possible to remove barriers to launching initiatives, enhance efficiency, and increase the chances of demonstrating success.

RabiesLaunchpad is a platform which supports the planning, implementation and evaluation of effective rabies control interventions by governments and NGOs to eliminate the risk of rabies to people. The system has been developed by teams running some of the largest rabies control programs in the world, in close collaboration with diverse governments, academic institutions, and communities. The platform is historically known as the WVS App, but is being relaunched in 2025 as RabiesLaunchpad. The technology consists of a web-based project management interface for project managers (RabiesLaunchpad), and smartphone apps (VaxApp and REACT), for use by field operatives conducting dog vaccination or rabies surveillance activities in the community. The system enables project managers to provide spatial direction to vaccination teams through simple maps displayed in VaxApp, who then report the details of each dog vaccinated for review by the project manager. This two-way flow of data enables the systematic management of large numbers of vaccination teams to eliminate rabies as efficiently as possible (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0200942). The REACT App supports the implementation and monitoring of rabies surveillance, a complex process involving human and animal health stakeholders. The system ensures robust data on which to demonstrate the attainment of rabies freedom.

Our solution supports the control, and ultimate elimination, of rabies from the dog populations in which it circulates, thereby removing the risk of rabies to people. Dog rabies is endemic in 122 countries worldwide, presenting a risk to over 80% of the world’s population. Vaccine shortages, distribution challenges and inequities in access to healthcare and veterinary services create a greater risk of dying from rabies among marginalized and disadvantaged sectors of society. Victims often die in horrific circumstances at home without any palliative care, as such the true burden of the disease is not understood. Our solution empowers governments with the tools to advance rabies elimination through mass dog vaccination; an equitable and cost-effective solution which eliminates the risk of rabies to everyone, regardless of their status in society. Veterinary departments are stretched by many priorities, but we are focused on discovering the most efficient approaches to rabies elimination and scaling our support of veterinary departments everywhere to protect their communities against rabies.