ISDS Conference

The interest of medication sales data in Syndromic Surveillance is well recognized. In France, where a real-time computerized surveillance system of frequent communicable diseases based on Sentinel general practitioners (SGPs) provides since 1984 a gold standard to evaluate other indicators, it has been shown that medication sales provided early alerts for influenza. Gastroenteritis surveillance relies in France on the surveillance of acute diarrhea by the SGPs in the general population, since 1991. The main objective of this study is to validate, at a national level, new indicators based on medication sales data to facilitate the detection of gastroenteritis epidemics.

Objective

This study examines how medication sales data can detect gastroenteritis epidemics in France.

On October 24, 2005, Hurricane Wilma made landfall on the southwest coast of Florida as a category 3 storm. The storm moved toward the northeast and passed through Palm Beach and Broward Counties before entering the Atlantic Ocean. Hurricane force winds and rain caused extensive damage to electrical infrastructure and traffic lights, and temporarily displaced thousands of residents. Power outages in Broward County affected over 90% of its 1.8 million residents, with some outages lasting >2 weeks. Boil water notices were declared for much of the county. Acute care hospitals remained open during this time, although services provided by health care providers in other settings were interrupted due to structural damage and power outages.

Objective

We used the syndromic surveillance system ESSENCE to describe the morbidity after Hurricane Wilma in Broward County, Florida.

The University of Washington has been working since 2000 with partners in Washington State to advance bioterrorism (BT) detection and preparedness. This project collects data on patients presenting with influenza-like illnesses and other potentially BT-related syndromes at emergency departments and primary care clinics (Kitsap, Clallam, and Jefferson counties) using a secure automated informatics approach. Local health jurisdiction epidemiologists use a web-based interface to view de-identified data and use a version of CDC’s EARS disease detection algorithms to watch for variances in patterns of diagnoses, volume, time and space as part of the public health real-time disease surveillance system. This processed hospital data is also made available back to the officials and administrators at the reporting hospital.

Objective

To understand GIS issues in a rural-tourban setting and demonstrate limitations of ZIPcode-only approaches compared to census tract and block approaches.

Syndromic Surveillance utilizes health-related symptom data to monitor disease outbreaks. Its’ potential for prompt detection of disease outbreaks and strengthening of rapid public health response is anticipated. As a result, syndromic surveillance is widely employed by many local and regional health care agencies across the country in both routine monitoring of disease outbreaks as well as in special national events. However, the efficacy and effectiveness of syndromic surveillance are yet to be substantiated. In Florida many localized Syndromic Surveillance have been deployed by county health departments with little oversight or coordination of any state and federal agencies. Furthermore, many aspects including the design, operation, and funding characteristics of these systems are not well known and information and practice are not shared, hindering the potential for regional networks with shared data source, networked platform, expanded geographic coverage. This survey aims to establish an inventory of Syndromic Surveillance in the State of Florida and helps identify issues common among these systems.

Objective

To gather inventory information on syndromic surveillance deployment and utilization in the State of Florida; To identify issues in developing, operating, and sustaining local systems; To assess needs for system evaluation in order to establish efficacy and effectiveness of syndromic/disease surveillance in the state.

Our objective was to adapt the city'­s syndromic surveillance system to help guide a violence intervention initiative in response to an upsurge in serious assaults and homicides in Boston.

This paper evaluates the expended and enhanced surveillance system specifically syndromic surveillance, which was implemented during the International Cricket Council Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007 (ICC CWC WI 2007) in Western Jamaica.

The interpretation of aberrations detected by syndromic surveillance is critical for success, but poses challenges for local health departments who must conduct appropriate follow-up and confirm outbreaks. This paper describes the response of the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) to a cluster of emergency department (ED) visits in children detected by syndromic surveillance.

To evaluate whether syndromic surveillance can detect localized outbreaks of lower-respiratory infections (LRI'­s) with limited numbers of alarms in time.

We explored the utility of tracking emergency department (ED) visits for febrile illness as a proxy for influenza surveillance, from both a local and a regional perspective.

To evaluate whether a rise or shift in severe morbidity and mortality by influenza can be detected with syndromic surveillance.