Data Management Mid-Course Review 

Remember the 5-Year Strategic Plan for DPH Data Management? Well, we do! After all, it is one of the guiding documents of the work performed by the Data Management Advisory Team (DMAT) and the Data Management Support Unit. It is chock-full of big ideas and grand visions, as it should be. We’ve got places to go, data to collect, programs to support, and Wisconsinite health and wellness to improve. Halfway through the initial strategic plan, we’re moving the needle on division data initiatives. Check out the full report or the summarized Mid-Course Review. 

Tapping into Clinical Data to Understand COVID-19

In partnership with the Wisconsin Statewide Health Information Network (WISHIN), DPH is pairing clinical data such as lab results, procedures, medications, and vital signs, alongside Wisconsin Electronic Disease Surveillance System (WEDSS) and syndromic surveillance data to improve COVID-19 surveillance and better understand COVID-19 cases.

The project team is currently finalizing data quality validation, and will proceed to data analysis once the data is prepared and cleaned. Potential use cases for the data include:

• Understanding of the long term burden of COVID-19, including deaths and patient-care costs.
• Identifying hospital and clinical resources utilized for individuals who recovered.
• Improving prediction models for future pandemics.

The current agreement with WISHIN for use of this data extends through December 2020. Please contact the project manager, Gayatri Raol, with any questions.

Off to New Endeavors

Join us in thanking our colleague and friend Kelly Shen and wishing her best of luck with her future endeavors. Kelly’s last day with DHS is August 12. It was an honor for the DMAT team to learn from such a dedicated, thoughtful, supportive, encouraging, and fun coworker. Thank you for your contributions to the work of DPH. Your new place is incredibly lucky to have you. Keep doing great things.