Early Warning System for Epidemics Launched

British health IT firm ComMedica has added a new module to its PIRILIS clinical information system that uses advanced algorithms to analyse data in order to predict the threat of epidemics such as influenza, or even epidemics caused by bioterrorism.

ComMedica says the software addition will allow hospitals to more easily and quickly locate domestic epidemics, such as influenza outbreaks, enabling hospitals to manage and contain these situations more efficiently. ComMedica add the system could also spot epidemics caused by bioterrorism.

“PIRILIS acts as an early warning system for hospitals and the Government, and shows how analysis of clinical information will be crucial in determining the seriousness of a biological terrorist attack,” says Mark Simon, ComMedica’s Chief Executive.

ComMedica says the daily reports from the system provide hospitals with invaluable information, pinpointing when resources will be under extra pressure. In the past, hospitals have had very little warning of an outbreak of ‘flu, which causes huge problems in resource planning.

The new Management Information Module of PIRILIS contains historical data collected from the Royal Liverpool Hospital in 1999, during a period that saw a severe ‘flu epidemic in the UK.

In 1999 it took about eight days for the authorities to realise that a ‘flu epidemic had started. ComMedica says that using the new software the epidemic could have been predicted with 75% accuracy on the first day, and with 85% accuracy on the second day.

ComMedica has used the MATLAB mathematical computing language from The MathWorks to build the new software add-on to its PIRILIS clinical information system.