NSSP Update – October 2023

NSSP Update

A Technical Newsletter for the NSSP Community of Practice | October 2023

The National Syndromic Surveillance Program issues NSSP Update monthly to share the latest Community of Practice activities, technical and program updates, and ways in which syndromic surveillance is improving public health.

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CDC

Protect Yourself from COVID-19, Flu, and RSV

See the new Weekly Viral Respiratory Illness Snapshot that summarizes key viral respiratory illness findings.

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CSTE

It’s Time to Plan for the 4th Annual Syndromic Surveillance Symposium

Join us at the 4th Annual Syndromic Surveillance Symposium. Engage with experts who influence the future of surveillance. Join us virtually December 5–7, 2023. Register by November 20, 2023

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TECHNICAL UPDATES

Data Validation Call

More than 50 people attended the October 4, 2023, Data Validation Call. The topics discussed were: Complications after August Update and Onboarding of Various Facility Types.

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DATA QUALITY CORNER

The Case of the Missing Chief Complaint

Sometimes uncovering the truth about data is a challenge. Sometimes it’s a true mystery. This whodunit will guide your search for clues as to why Chief Complaint can have low completeness by visit and suggests several ways to fix the problem.

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TECHNICAL PUBLICATIONS AND STANDARDS

New Manuals on Data Quality Dashboard and Access & Management Center

Check out our Onboarding Resources, Job Aids, User Manuals, Quick Start Guides, and Data Dictionaries

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HOW NSSP WORKS ACROSS CDC

COVID-19 is a Public Health Priority CDC Continues to Monitor

NSSP data and algorithms are used to detect trends and monitor effectiveness of prevention and control strategies.

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TECHNICAL TIPS AND TRAINING

Tips for Using Free-Text Queries to Improve ESSENCE Search Criteria

Here’s how free-text queries work when some fields are BLANK and others NULL.

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NSSP WEBSITE

New to Syndromic Surveillance?

For new site admins, we have a job aid for easing into your new role. New staff? Read “Tips for Engaging Staff.” New to NSSP? Check out these resources to learn about syndromic surveillance, especially the new training series titled Introduction to Syndromic Surveillance Methodology.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Check Out the Updated Laboratory Data FAQs

We explain NSSP’s agreement with a national lab, data flow and frequency, health conditions covered, specimen identifiers, and more.

Jan 2022 ESSENCE Word Cloud

Monthly National-level Free-text ESSENCE Queries

Analysts can exercise a high level of customization by using free-text queries. They can quickly code free-text queries and rapidly respond to outbreaks, disasters, and health events that unfold. These word clouds capture free-text queries from a national perspective.

Jan 2022 ESSENCE Word Cloud

Developing Syndrome Definitions

NSSP works with health departments, CDC programs, and others to develop and improve syndrome definitions. Here is a list of the syndromes being worked on now.

Mark Your Calendar

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The NSSP CoP Call Calendar lists the monthly NSSP Community of Practice call and subcommittee/group meetings. The CoP Call Calendar is maintained by the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE).
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The monthly patching schedule for Testing/Development and Onboarding/Production environments is posted in Technical Updates.