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ESSENCE

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.

Referenced File
Monitoring_And_Auditing_The_Transfer_Of_Syndromic_Surveillance_Data_To_Ensure_Data_Completeness.pdf
Submitted by elamb on

Held on March 14, 2019.

During this 90-minute session, Aaron Kite-Powell, M.S., from CDC and Wayne Loschen, M.S., from JHU-APL provided updates on the NSSP ESSENCE platform and answered the community's questions on ESSENCE functions and features.

The Oregon ESSENCE team has developed a guide for other states to use to set up a web service link to their poison center and extract its data into ESSENCE. It contains advice based on Oregon’s experience in developing its link with its poison center and NDPS, a plug-&-play (almost) Rhapsody configuration file (and instructions) to install, and data dictionaries provided by NPDS.

The publication date is February 1, 2019.

Submitted by ctong on

In response to the threat of biologic terrorism and the resurgence of virulent forms of infectious diseases, technologic advances are being applied to disease surveillance. Syndromic surveillance systems have emerged to capture and analyze health-indicator data to identify abnormal health conditions and enable early detection of outbreaks. Given the limited public health experience with biologic terrorism and the variety of possible terrorism scenarios, the research community is exploring the application of advanced detection technology to prediagnostic syndromic data.

Submitted by elamb on

Presented December 4, 2018.

The Webinar, Introduction of SAS Studio Basics to the BioSense Platform, will include overviews, summaries, tips, tricks, and examples across a number of SAS topics on the BioSense Platform. Some of these topics will include the BioSense Platform SAS Pilot background and summary, the SAS Studio overview and setup, neat SAS features, code examples, and how to perform an API call from ESSENCE.

Presenters

In recent years, Washington State has experienced episodes of degraded air quality from wildfires burning within the state, as well as surrounding states and provinces. Wildfire smoke, particularly the high concentrations of small particulate matter generated by incomplete combustion, can lead to a number of minor as well as significant acute health effects, such as respiratory and cardiac-related issues. As a result, Washington State is developing methodology to monitor syndromic surveillance data for evidence of health impacts across Washington State during ongoing wildfires.

Submitted by Anonymous on

Free text queries are performed by ESSENCE users very often. And increasingly, those free text queries are incorporating negation terms that allow the users to find case definitions when certain terms are not present. This video attempts to explain some of the special cases where negation in free text queries may be confusing for users. The video will mention some features in ESSENCE that you may not be familiar with like the Explain Query button and Advanced Query Tool (AQT).

Submitted by elamb on

Held September 13, 2018.

Aaron Kite-Powell, M.S., from CDC and Wayne Loschen, M.S., from JHU-APL were available during this 60-minute session to provide updates on the ESSENCE platform as well as tips and tricks to make it more useful for members. Attendees came prepared with questions regarding ESSENCE functions, capabilities and uses.

ESSENCE is a web-based syndromic surveillance system utilized by DHMH to detect and track outbreaks, suspicious patterns of illness, public health emergencies, and biological threats. ESSENCE ED chief complaint data is collected daily from 47 emergency departments in Maryland (all 45 acute care hospitals and 2 freestanding emergency medical facilities). A chief complaint in ESSENCE is a free text field that lists the patient’s reason for the ED visit upon arrival at the hospital. Chief complaint data may be comprehensive or abbreviated and may include a single reason or multiple reasons for the ED visit. Medical history may be included in chief complaint data, which can create low specificity (false positive cases). Chief complaint data alone may yield less accurate modeling and lower outbreak detection sensitivity. This analysis evaluates whether counts of chief complaints are appropriate indicators of disease burden for several specific illnesses, by comparing chief complaints to their corresponding discharge diagnoses.

Objective

The state of Maryland has incorporated chief complaint data from 100% of its acute care emergency departments (ED) into the Electronic Surveillance System for the Early Notification of Community-Based Epidemics (ESSENCE). In 2012, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) began using this statewide disease surveillance system to track several specific disease measures including certain chronic diseases. The validity of using ESSENCE ED data to track and analyze these health outcomes was evaluated.

Submitted by isds_knowledge… on
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