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When the opioid epidemic began in the early 1990s, pills such as oxycodone were the primary means of abuse. Beginning in 2010, injection use of, first, heroin and then synthetic opioids dramatically increased, which led the number of overdose deaths involving opioids to increase fivefold between 1999 and 2016.1 It would be expected that BBP rates would rise with this increase in injection use, and, nationally, there has been a rise in acute hepatitis C (HCV) rates, although the other two main BBPs, acute hepatitis B (HBV) and acute human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have been flat and declining, respectively.2,3 In this study, we compared New Jersey's reported incidence of these three BBPs (acute HBV, acute HCV, and HIV) over five years (2013-2017) with syndromic surveillance data for opioid use over the same time period in order to test the hypothesis that emergency department (ED) visits for opioid use could be used as a predictor of BBP infection.

Objective: To utilize New Jersey's syndromic surveillance data in the study and comparison of trends in injection opioid use and infection with selected bloodborne pathogens (BBPs) over the years 2013-2017.

Submitted by elamb on

EpiCenter, NJ’s statewide syndromic surveillance system, collects ED registration data. The system uses chief complaint data to classify ED visits into syndrome categories and provides alerts to state and local health departments for surveillance anomalies. After the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) started collecting medical notes including triage notes, which contain more specific ED visit information than chief complaint, from 10 EDs to strengthen HAI syndromic surveillance efforts. In 2017, the NJDOH was aware of one NJ resident whose surgical site was infected following a cosmetic procedure outside of the US. This event triggered an intensive data mining using medical notes collected in EpiCenter. The NJDOH staff searched one week of medical notes data in EpiCenter with a specific keyword to identify additional potential cases of surgical-site infections (SSI) that could be associated with medical tourism.

Objective:

Medical notes provide a rich source of information that can be used as additional supporting information for healthcare-associated infection (HAI) investigations. The medical notes from 10 New Jersey (NJ) emergency departments (ED) were searched to identify cases of surgical-site infections (SSI).

Submitted by elamb on

NJDOH created a custom classification in EpiCenter to detect synthetic cannabinoid-related ED visits using chief complaint data. DOH staff included the keywords black magic, black mamba, cloud 9, cloud 10,incense, k2, legal high, pot potpourri, spice, synthetic marijuana, voodoo doll, wicked x, and zombie which were obtained from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Staff also included the keywords, agitation, k-2, moon rocks, seizure, skunk, and yucatan to characterize the related event.

Submitted by uysz on

In New Jersey, real-time emergency department (ED) data are currently received from EDs by Health Monitoring Systems Inc.’s (HMS) EpiCenter, which collects, manages and analyzes ED registration data for syndromic surveillance, and provides alerts to state and local health departments for surveillance anomalies.

EpiCenter receives pre-diagnostic chief complaint data from 78 of 80 acute care and satellite EDs. The need for more specific information raises the possibility that other data elements from EDs such as triage notes can be of utility in detecting outbreaks without a significant delay. This study evaluates the inclusion of triage notes in EpiCenter to detect a recent increased usage of synthetic cannabinoids. At the time of this evaluation, three New Jersey hospitals were providing triage notes in their EpiCenter data.

Objective

Describe the inclusion of triage notes into a syndromic surveillance system to enhance population health surveillance activities.

Submitted by teresa.hamby@d… on

In New Jersey, Health Monitoring Systems Inc.’s (HMS) EpiCenter collects chief complaint data for syndromic surveillance from 79 of 80 emergency departments (ED). Using keyword algorithms, these visits are classified into syndrome categories for monitoring unusual health events.

HAIs are infections that patients acquire while they are receiving treatment for a health condition in a health care setting. Following the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) Communicable Disease Service (CDS) started recruiting EDs to include triage note data in addition to chief complaint data to enhance surveillance capability for Ebola and other HAIs. Research by the University of North Carolina suggests triage note data improve the ability to detect illness of interest by fivefold. Currently, there are three NJ EDs with triage note data in EpiCenter along with ICD 10 codes which can be used for comparison.

This pilot study will assess whether infections following a surgical procedure can be captured in triage note data along with ICD codes. Also, this evaluation will determine if triage note data can be used to create HAI custom classifications for syndromic surveillance. These classifications can potentially be used by surveillance and/or preparedness personnel and local health departments, as well as hospitals, to better prepare for detecting and preventing HAIs that are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the U.S. 

Objective

Evaluate the usage of triage note data from EpiCenter, a syndromic surveillance system utilized by New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), to enhance Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) surveillance for infections following a surgical procedure. 

Submitted by Magou on
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