Interest of Prospective Spatio-Temporal Analysis from ED Data to Detect Unusual Health Events

Many syndromic surveillance systems use spatio-temporal analysis to detect local outbreaks such as gastrointestinal illnesses and lower respiratory infections. In Reunion Island, the syndromic surveillance system is based mainly on ED visits. Spatial analysis was first used in 2013 to validate retrospectively a cluster of viral meningitis. At the end of 2014, the Regional Office of French Institute for Public Health Surveillance implemented a prospective computer-automated space-time analysis in order to launch daily analyses of ED visits.

Objective

To present the implementation and the first results of a prospective spatio-temporal analysis from emergency department (ED) data in Reunion Island.