Alert System to Detect Possible School-based Outbreaks of Influenza-like Illness

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Emerging Infectious Diseases
Volume 17, Number 2–February 2011
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/index.htm

Dispatches
Alert System to Detect Possible School-based Outbreaks of Influenza-like Illness
P. Mann et al.

Abstract
To evaluate the usefulness of school absentee data in identifying outbreaks as part of syndromic surveillance, we examined data collected from public schools in Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA. An innovative automated alert system captured information about school-specific absenteeism to detect and provide real-time notification of possible outbreaks of influenza-like illness.