Syndromic surveillance has been used by state agencies to collect real-time information on disease outbreaks but has not been used to collect data in the occupational setting. Therefore, OHS staff has begun evaluating a real-time surveillance tool to track a variety of occupationally-related emergency room visits throughout the state via EpiCenter, the NJDOH’s existing real-time surveillance system. This proposal applies established epidemiologic techniques to a different set of circumstances than they have been applied to in the past. Incorporating Syndromic Surveillance data with hospital discharge data will enhance the ability to classify and capture work-related nonfatal injuries and improve efforts of prevention. By employing a realtime, independent data source such as EpiCenter, the classification of work-related injuries and illnesses could be greatly enhanced, leading to a better understanding of the burden of non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses, and allowing for quicker intervention.
Objective
The New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), Occupational Health Surveillance (OHS) Unit staff proposes to evaluate a realtime surveillance tool to track a variety of occupationally-related emergency room visits throughout the state via EpiCenter, the NJDOH’s existing real-time surveillance system.