Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the benefits of wastewater surveillance to supplement clinical data. Numerous online information dashboards have been rapidly, and typically independently, developed to communicate environmental surveillance data to public health officials and the public. In thi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IWA Publishing
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Water and Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://jwh.iwaponline.com/content/21/5/615 |
| _version_ | 1797810221805993984 |
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| author | Colleen C. Naughton Rochelle H. Holm Nancy J. Lin Brooklyn P. James Ted Smith |
| author_facet | Colleen C. Naughton Rochelle H. Holm Nancy J. Lin Brooklyn P. James Ted Smith |
| author_sort | Colleen C. Naughton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the benefits of wastewater surveillance to supplement clinical data. Numerous online information dashboards have been rapidly, and typically independently, developed to communicate environmental surveillance data to public health officials and the public. In this study, we review dashboards presenting SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data and propose a path toward harmonization and improved risk communication. A list of 127 dashboards representing 27 countries was compiled. The variability was high and encompassed aspects including the graphics used for data presentation (e.g., line/bar graphs, maps, and tables), log versus linear scale, and 96 separate ways of labeling SARS-CoV-2 wastewater concentrations. Globally, dashboard presentations also differed by region. Approximately half of the dashboards presented clinical case data, and 25% presented variant monitoring. Only 30% of dashboards provided downloadable source data. While any single dashboard is likely useful in its own context and locality, the high variation across dashboards at best prevents optimal use of wastewater surveillance data on a broader geographical scale and at worst could lead to risk communication issues and the potential for public health miscommunication. There is a great opportunity to improve scientific communication through the adoption of uniform data presentation conventions, standards, and best practices in this field.
HIGHLIGHTS
Rapid development of presenting SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data via online dashboards.;
Reviewed 127 global SARS-CoV-2 wastewater dashboards and evaluated presentation formats.;
Dashboard variability was high across data presentation, line/bar graph scales, downloadable source files, units of measure, and variant monitoring.;
Opportunity to adopt uniform data presentation conventions, standards, and best practices in this field.; |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T07:04:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-dee1e9d3fe0d4b6fb53ae5210905eec0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1477-8920 1996-7829 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T07:04:53Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | IWA Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Water and Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-dee1e9d3fe0d4b6fb53ae5210905eec02023-06-06T12:25:32ZengIWA PublishingJournal of Water and Health1477-89201996-78292023-05-0121561562410.2166/wh.2023.312312Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agendaColleen C. Naughton0Rochelle H. Holm1Nancy J. Lin2Brooklyn P. James3Ted Smith4 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Merced, Merced, CA 95343, USA Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute, School of Medicine, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, USA Material Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Merced, Merced, CA 95343, USA Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute, School of Medicine, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, USA The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the benefits of wastewater surveillance to supplement clinical data. Numerous online information dashboards have been rapidly, and typically independently, developed to communicate environmental surveillance data to public health officials and the public. In this study, we review dashboards presenting SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data and propose a path toward harmonization and improved risk communication. A list of 127 dashboards representing 27 countries was compiled. The variability was high and encompassed aspects including the graphics used for data presentation (e.g., line/bar graphs, maps, and tables), log versus linear scale, and 96 separate ways of labeling SARS-CoV-2 wastewater concentrations. Globally, dashboard presentations also differed by region. Approximately half of the dashboards presented clinical case data, and 25% presented variant monitoring. Only 30% of dashboards provided downloadable source data. While any single dashboard is likely useful in its own context and locality, the high variation across dashboards at best prevents optimal use of wastewater surveillance data on a broader geographical scale and at worst could lead to risk communication issues and the potential for public health miscommunication. There is a great opportunity to improve scientific communication through the adoption of uniform data presentation conventions, standards, and best practices in this field. HIGHLIGHTS Rapid development of presenting SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data via online dashboards.; Reviewed 127 global SARS-CoV-2 wastewater dashboards and evaluated presentation formats.; Dashboard variability was high across data presentation, line/bar graph scales, downloadable source files, units of measure, and variant monitoring.; Opportunity to adopt uniform data presentation conventions, standards, and best practices in this field.;http://jwh.iwaponline.com/content/21/5/615covid-19health communicationsewagestandardstechnologywastewater-based epidemiology |
| spellingShingle | Colleen C. Naughton Rochelle H. Holm Nancy J. Lin Brooklyn P. James Ted Smith Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda Journal of Water and Health covid-19 health communication sewage standards technology wastewater-based epidemiology |
| title | Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda |
| title_full | Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda |
| title_fullStr | Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda |
| title_full_unstemmed | Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda |
| title_short | Online dashboards for SARS-CoV-2 wastewater data need standard best practices: An environmental health communication agenda |
| title_sort | online dashboards for sars cov 2 wastewater data need standard best practices an environmental health communication agenda |
| topic | covid-19 health communication sewage standards technology wastewater-based epidemiology |
| url | http://jwh.iwaponline.com/content/21/5/615 |
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