Buechner Jay

With the recent emphasis on public health preparedness, health departments are identifying new ways to prepare for emergencies. There has been a significant increase in the number of syndromic surveillance systems operating in recent years. These systems are based on real-time information from hospital emergency departments that is transmitted and analyzed electronically for the purpose of early detection of public health emergencies. Like other states, Rhode Island sought to enhance its traditional surveillance activities through the implementation of such a system. Rhode Island implemented the Real-time Outbreak and Disease Surveillance (RODS) system, developed by the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Biomedical Informatics. Data from three hospitals were collected as part of the pilot implementation of the Rhode Island RODS system. Personnel at both hospitals and the Department of Health, trained in surveillance-related areas such as infection control and epidemiology, received access to RI RODS. As part of the evaluation framework, Rhode Island desired to assess system user attitudes and opinions towards the new system.

Objective

This paper presents results of a survey assessing syndromic surveillance system initial user satisfaction and attitudes regarding syndromic surveillance.

Rhode Island implemented the Real-time Outbreak and Disease Surveillance (RODS) system, developed in 1999 by the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Biomedical Informatics. This system is based on real-time information from hospital emergency departments that is transmitted and analyzed electronically for the purpose of early detection of and situational awareness for public health emergencies. Through this system, chief complaint is reported in real-time. Diagnoses, coded in the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM), are reported to the RI RODS system as they become available. Three hospitals are currently participating in a pilot implementation of the RI RODS system.

Preliminary work by a CDC Working Group (CDCWG) developed recommendations for syndrome definitions for use in syndromic surveillance programs. Ten syndromes, based on ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes, identified diseases associated with critical bioterrorism-associated agents or indicative of naturally occurring infectious disease outbreaks. As a component of the evaluation of the RI RODS system, we evaluated the RI RODS chief complaint classifier (CoCo) using ICD-9-CM codes and the CDCWG work as the gold standard.

Objective

This paper presents findings related to the evaluation of the CoCo used in the pilot implementation of a syndromic surveillance system in Rhode Island.