Developing a sentinel syndromic surveillance system using school-absenteeism data, example monitoring absences over the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic

Lai, Jennifer, Hughes, Helen E, Morbey, Roger, Loveridge, Paul, Lopez Bernal, Jamie, Saliba, Vanessa, Kissling, Esther, Lovelock-Wren, Alex, Mabbitt, Jeremy and Elliot, Alex J ORCID: 0000-0002-6414-3065 (2021) Developing a sentinel syndromic surveillance system using school-absenteeism data, example monitoring absences over the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. EPIDEMIOLOGY AND INFECTION, 149. e248-.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0950268821002399

Abstract

This study describes the development of a pilot sentinel school absence syndromic surveillance system. Using data from a sample of schools in England the capability of this system to monitor the impact of disease on school absences in school-aged children is shown, using the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic period as an example. Data were obtained from an online app service used by schools and parents to report their children absent, including reasons/symptoms relating to absence. For 2019 and 2020, data were aggregated into daily counts of 'total' and 'cough' absence reports. There was a large increase in the number of absence reports in March 2020 compared to March 2019, corresponding to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in England. Absence numbers then fell rapidly and remained low from late March 2020 until August 2020, while lockdown was in place in England. Compared to 2019, there was a large increase in the number of absence reports in September 2020 when schools re-opened in England, although the peak number of absences was smaller than in March 2020. This information can help provide context around the absence levels in schools associated with COVID-19. Also, the system has the potential for further development to monitor the impact of other conditions on school absence, e.g. gastrointestinal infections.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Absence data, COVID-19, real-time surveillance, school-aged children, syndromic surveillance
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Population Health
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	16 Dec 2021 09:17
Last Modified:	18 Jan 2023 21:19
DOI:	10.1017/S0950268821002399
Open Access URL:	https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268821002399
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3145468