Data Platform Tracks Hospital Bed Capacity During COVID-19 Outbreak
Definitive Healthcare and Esri have launched a data platform that tracks US hospital bed capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Thinkstock
By Jessica Kent
- Definitive Healthcare has partnered with Esri to launch an interactive data platform that allows people to analyze and monitor US hospital bed capacity, as well as potential geographic areas of risk, during the COVID-19 outbreak.
For more coronavirus updates, visit our resource page, updated twice daily by Xtelligent Healthcare Media.
The resource shows the location and number of licensed beds, staffed beds, ICU beds, and total bed utilization rates in the US.
In addition to Definitive Healthcare’s US Hospital Bed data resource, the Esri COVID-19 GIS Hub contains other important information, including an overlay of US Census data to help leaders compare the surrounding US population with the total number of available hospital beds.
Definitive Healthcare and Esri designed these resources to provide researchers, public health authorities, and the public with user-friendly information to help identify geographic areas of risk, or places with a low capacity to accommodate sick patients.
In the dashboard, Definitive Healthcare’s data and intelligence is spatially enabled by Esri’s Geospatial Cloud, accurately showing where in the US, and at which hospitals, additional beds could be accommodated.
“As the COVID-19 virus spreads in the US and around the world, public health providers and other types of responders have been trying to understand which areas may require the greatest amount of aid. We built this geographic map of US hospital bed utilization and capacity to solve some of these challenges,” said Este Geraghty, ESRI’s Chief Medical Officer.
“We have been using Definitive Healthcare’s industry-leading healthcare datasets for several years and have relied on their platform’s accuracy and depth for many of our research endeavors. In times such as these, accessible and actionable information is crucial, and we know we can count on our long-standing relationship with Definitive Healthcare during this time of worldwide need. This partnership is truly a match made in heaven.”
Esri’s COVID-19 GIS Hub contains several useful maps and tools for tracking information about the spread of coronavirus around the world.
These resources will prove to be valuable as the outbreak spreads across the country, and healthcare professionals strive to expand patient care access.
“We are happy to support our long-time client, ESRI, with essential data to help them provide powerful intelligence on healthcare providers to governments that are recommending actions to manage the impact of COVID-19 worldwide,” said Jason Krantz, Founder and CEO of Definitive Healthcare.
“We support their mission fully and want to do our part to share pertinent, relevant, and actionable information to people who need to make important decisions for their countries, communities, and families. This is an unprecedented time, and we are committed to doing everything we can by providing the data necessary to help manage this crisis.”
Data visualization tools have emerged as a viable way to track and monitor COVID-19 and its impact around the world. Johns Hopkins University launched an interactive, real-time data dashboard in late January to monitor confirmed coronavirus cases, recoveries, and deaths in all affected countries.
“With the exception of Australia, Hong Kong, and Italy, the CSSE at Johns Hopkins University has reported newly infected countries ahead of WHO, with Hong Kong and Italy reported within hours of the corresponding WHO situation report,” Johns Hopkins researchers said.
“Given the popularity and impact of the dashboard to date, we plan to continue hosting and managing the tool throughout the entirety of the COVID-19 outbreak and to build out its capabilities to establish a standing tool to monitor and report on future outbreaks. We believe our efforts are crucial to help inform modelling efforts and control measures during the earliest stages of the outbreak.”
As the situation continues to unfold, data dashboards and visualization tools will be comprehensive resources for tracking and monitoring the state of COVID-19 in the US and around the world.
