Syndromic data

The electronic surveillance system for the early notification of community-based epidemics (ESSENCE) is the web-based syndromic surveillance system utilized by DHMH. ESSENCE utilizes a secure, automated process for the transfer of data to the ESSENCE system. Data sources in the Maryland ESSENCE system include emergency department (ED) chief complaints, poison control center calls, over-the-counter (OTC) medication sales, and pharmaceutical transaction data (for certain classes of anti-bacterial and anti-viral medication). All data sources have statewide coverage and are captured daily in near real-time fashion. OIT developed a web based application in conjunction with OP&R to allow the epidemiologists involved in the ESSENCE program to monitor and audit the transfer of this data. The application allows the user to indicate whether or not each data file has been consumed into ESSENCE for any date of the year. The user can edit these daily entries at any time to update the status of the data that has been received. The user may also query the database by data source, date, and date range to generate a report. The database also contains contact information for technical and infection control staff at the hospitals that participate in the ESSENCE program. Finally, the application can also generate reports that detail which users have logged into ESSENCE, when the log-in occurred, and which pages within ESSENCE were visited.

Objective

To describe the application and process developed by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) Office of Preparedness and Response (OP&R) and Office of Information Technology (OIT) for monitoring and auditing the transfer of syndromic surveillance data.

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.

This paper describes a method of avoiding false alerts in automated syndromic surveillance algorithms which monitor the temporal relationship between a particular monitored syndrome (the ìtargetî) in relationship to other reference healthcare data streams (the ìcontextî).

The inception of syndromic surveillance has spawned a great deal of research into emergency department chief complaint data. In addition to its use as an early warning system of a bioterror or outbreak event, many health departments are attempting to maximize the utility of the information to augment chronic and communicable disease surveillance. Hence, it can be used to enhance the traditional methods of surveillance. Using syndromic data to describe what could be the normal for a geographic area may be useful in monitoring a population for disease trends. Prevention efforts could be concentrated during a particular time of year. In addition, geospatial shifts in directional trends may indicate an unusual occurrence related to the utilization of emergency department services.

Objective

To describe the geographical mean as well as the directional trends of syndromes for the District of Columbia using temporal and geospatial analyses.

This paper discusses selection of temporal alerting algorithms for syndromic surveillance to achieve reliable detection performance based on statistical properties and the epidemiological context of the input data. We used quantities calculated from brief data history to derive criteria for algorithm selection.

This panel member consultation is an International Society of Disease Surveillance (ISDS) sponsored project. It involved expert personnel in their respective area to address specific, priority questions confronting researchers, developers, and public health practioners in the field of syndromic surveillance (SS). The objective of this consultation will be to develop expert, consensus-based recommendations that address specific, unsettled problems or unanswered questions that hinder advances in utilization of syndromic surveillance data in combination with other data sources. Recommendations arising from the consultation should facilitate efforts by researchers, developers, or practitioners to be able to stride ahead and make progress.