Providence launched an online "heat map" Dec. 10 to let members of the public see how prevalent COVID-19 is across the geographic areas where the Renton, Wash.-based health system treats patients.
The DetectionMap tool uses de-identified data to track a combination of patient symptoms and test results as compared to online tools that rely solely on test results that usually lag the onset of symptoms. With the map, people can zoom into their neighborhood to check how many patients with COVID-19 Providence is seeing in that particular area.
The digital map shows data in the geographic areas for which Providence has sufficient data; the areas currently covered by the map include Seattle, Eastern Washington, Portland, Ore., Los Angeles and Orange County, Calif.
While DetectionMap currently only focuses on COVID-19, Providence plans to expand the tool in the future to show the prevalence of the seasonal flu.