The Importance of Local Level Data During the 2022 Mpox Outbreak
Abstract
Background: At the onset of the mpox outbreak, our jurisdiction accounted for most reported cases, but little data was available to the public about the burden of disease, causing stakeholders to submit requests for local-level data. We aimed to use local-level data to create a public-facing data visualization report to increase public knowledge about the burden of disease and identify gaps and disparities to guide mitigation efforts.
Methods: Epidemiologists conducted case investigations to collect demographic, symptom, and exposure information. We interviewed 77% of reported cases to obtain relevant information and used data quality checks on the 18% of unreachable cases to ensure data completeness. We exported jurisdictional data from the state surveillance system and created a public-facing report on the local-level trends of mpox case demographics to inform the public and stakeholders on the burden of disease within the community.
Results: We used Microsoft Excel to analyze the data and publish it in a visual format, breaking down cases by race, gender, ethnicity, and age. At the onset of the outbreak, white men accounted for most of the cases at the national level, which contrasted with the local level, where black men consistently accounted for around 78% of the cases. Having this information allowed stakeholders to ensure vaccination and mitigation efforts were targeting those most affected.
Conclusions: Publishing a report available to the public allowed anyone to have access to data on the burden of disease in different demographic groups. Stakeholders accessed data to measure vaccine equity efforts and those who submitted data requests were directed to the report. Having local-level data and the ability to create a data visualization report of the epidemiology of our cases strengthened our district’s response to the mpox outbreak.
Keywords
Data visualization, epidemiology, mpox, local public health
The Importance of Local Level Data During the 2022 Mpox Outbreak
Background: At the onset of the mpox outbreak, our jurisdiction accounted for most reported cases, but little data was available to the public about the burden of disease, causing stakeholders to submit requests for local-level data. We aimed to use local-level data to create a public-facing data visualization report to increase public knowledge about the burden of disease and identify gaps and disparities to guide mitigation efforts.
Methods: Epidemiologists conducted case investigations to collect demographic, symptom, and exposure information. We interviewed 77% of reported cases to obtain relevant information and used data quality checks on the 18% of unreachable cases to ensure data completeness. We exported jurisdictional data from the state surveillance system and created a public-facing report on the local-level trends of mpox case demographics to inform the public and stakeholders on the burden of disease within the community.
Results: We used Microsoft Excel to analyze the data and publish it in a visual format, breaking down cases by race, gender, ethnicity, and age. At the onset of the outbreak, white men accounted for most of the cases at the national level, which contrasted with the local level, where black men consistently accounted for around 78% of the cases. Having this information allowed stakeholders to ensure vaccination and mitigation efforts were targeting those most affected.
Conclusions: Publishing a report available to the public allowed anyone to have access to data on the burden of disease in different demographic groups. Stakeholders accessed data to measure vaccine equity efforts and those who submitted data requests were directed to the report. Having local-level data and the ability to create a data visualization report of the epidemiology of our cases strengthened our district’s response to the mpox outbreak.
