Evaluation of REDCap as a Tool for Outbreak Data Management, Illinois, 2013-2014
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v7i1.5836Abstract
Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) is a secure web application for building and managing surveys and databases. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) evaluated the use of REDCap for outbreak management by conducting a retrospective analysis of four recent outbreaks: a restaurant-associated foodborne illness outbreak; introduction of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome; poison ivy/sumac/oak rash outbreak; and a hospital-based New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase cluster. IDPH evaluated how REDCap could have impacted each response using six criteria: magnitude; self-reporting of symptoms and exposures; storage and multi-site access to lab reports; reuse of templates; repeated measurements; and ability to perform long-term case follow-up.