Epidemiology Program Launched by Health Monitoring Systems
EpiCenter was introduced by Health Monitoring Systems, one of the most comprehensive public health surveillance systems available. The new software program is designed for use by public health specialists, particularly epidemiologists and others who participate in surveillance programming.
EpiCenter is an open source, web-based application. HMS hosts the application over the web using its own servers. This design limits the likelihood of technical issues or problems associated with software deployment. It also prevents problems with interoperability with other programs.
The system is capable of processing and correlating multiple streams of data in real time. Data is processed to produce meaningful results displayed with graphs or charts and automatically flags anomalies noted. The system can be used to support local, state, and national investigations.
The system can be customized to collect particular data points, such as notifiable diseases. Specific ICD-9 codes can be monitored or specific symptoms, discharge reports, lab results, and other data points can be automatically collected with the software. Agencies can determine which sorts of data they would like to capture through the EpiCenter classifier system.
The program design allows one investigation to consider multiple patterns of anomalies simultaneously. An additional feature supports syndromic surveillance to monitor community health conditions. Outbreak management functions are also supported which can be drilled all the way down to specific neighborhoods.
The system operates seamlessly with immunization registries, disease reporting systems, and other programs used in the public health environment. The system provides clinicians with a comprehensive view of all data sources, even those that are distinct. This simplifies identification of new or emerging public health threats.
A new feature introduced in this system allows tracking patients over time, such as after patient discharge from the emergency room or hospital. Follow-up over time provides analysts with more detailed information about the severity of disease.
May 9, 2008 Related topics: Product Launches, Diagnostic