Data reporting without legacy software: A tutorial in initiative

New Albany, MS – Readers who have even a passing interest in the Coronavirus Pandemic which currently holds Mississippi in its thrall, may have seen the following notice on the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) website: “Our daily COVID-19 update will be limited as we work to resolve technical problems in our data reporting system.”

What is the problem at MSDH?

Since June 17th, the MSDH has been unable to report even the most basic COVID-19 health care data needed by the public.

Barring an act of God, which would most certainly have been happily reported by the MSDH, there are only two likely explanations: incompetence or politically motivated deception. Recent events in state government indicate that either (or both) are possible.

The last full post from the MSDH was on Wednesday, June 17, when they posted the figures as of 6:00 PM on the 16th. The day’s data reporting contained the news that the state’s highest ever number of positive cases (489) had been recorded on the 16th. This was 50 more cases than the previous record, posted on 5-30. There were 23 new deaths posted, continuing the rise from the previous week.

Then, nothing.

MSDH website content on 6-21-2020

On June 21, up until about 8:00PM, the following heading was on the website:

Information gleaned about three pages into the MSDH website explained that the problem is “legacy software” and promised (minimal) daily updates to the website and social media. The website said, in part:

“The Mississippi State Department of Health apologizes for the interruption of COVID-19 case data. The agency is working to address legacy software issues impacting its ability to create detailed reports.

“Further detailed data reports and most charts will not be not available until the agency resolves these software issues. In the meantime, we will continue to provide daily case counts and deaths on our website and social media.”

The first chart supplied under the “Updated June 20, 2020” heading was, confusingly, labeled June 17, which should be June 16th numbers according to website explanation of reporting parameters. This conflicted with the report actually posted on June 17, listing 489 new cases and 23 deaths. Additionally, both blocks of the chart referred to “New COVID-19 Positive cases,” though one block was titled NEW DEATHS. All in all, not very confidence-inspiring.

Click to enlarge: Note that the fine print of both blocks mention “cases.”

This chart was followed by a chart of hospitalizations, showing data through 6-19.

Next came 15 more charts reporting the COVID-19 statistics in a variety of manners, which are mostly of interest to statisticians or national and international data collection centers, and all bearing data no more recent than June 16th.

At about 8:00 PM on June 21, the site was finally updated:

• An e-mailed subscriber’s bulletin sent at 8PM: again mentioned the “legacy software” problem, still without details; furnished a chart with hospitalization data; and contained a “Find Out More” section with several links, including:
  • “COVID-19 cases, data and statistics,” which went to the MSDH website, now stating Updated June 21, 2020
• The confusing June 17 chart of deaths and cases (pictured above) is gone.
• On the “updated” website one still found, three pages in, an updated hospitalization graphic and the promise to update new cases and deaths daily on “our website and social media.”
• This was followed by the only statistics regarding cases and deaths to be found on the site…an Ethnicity Report, current through 6PM June 16th.

Click to enlarge.

• Then, the same 15 charts mentioned above, with data no more recent than June 16.

Again, we ask – is the data reporting issue the result of incompetence or politically motivated deception? Both still seem in the running.  Both incompetence and political motivation (along with flagrant greed) were recently involved in multiple expensive and shameful problems in other state departments. And, if political motivation is involved, Mississippi would not be the first state, or even the second, suspected of misrepresenting COVID-19 statistics for political reasons.

What does the general public need each day?

We submit to the MSDH that most people are interested in only limited data on a daily basis. The general public is not composed of scientists, epidemiologists or statisticians; its interests and information requirements are far more personal:

• How many new cases do we have?
• How many more citizens are dead of COVID-19?
• How close is my hospital to being overwhelmed?
• What areas near me should I avoid if I am concerned about my safety?

We believe that anyone with the correct motivation and a minimum of initiative could see to it that the public gets necessary, basic data on a daily basis. To the end of assisting the public in receiving that very basic information, we suggest that:

• In the absence of available “legacy software,” the use of legal pads, number 2 pencils with good erasers, telephones and calculators will suffice.
• The governor should require all reporting sites to contact MSDH on a daily basis with information on new cases and deaths, in a manner and on schedules set by MSDH.
• An adequate number of MSDH personnel, who are able to hear, write down and tally information, should be supplied with the above mentioned tools.
• Once daily, at a regularly scheduled time, MSDH should provide succinct information to the public, using news media, television, radio, etc.  PLEASE recognize that many of Mississippi’s most vulnerable citizens, many of whom are actually following the information and safety suggestions, probably do not use social media, and may not even have internet services. Try to cover all the bases.
• Keep it simple! Stop overwhelming the public with conflicting jargon and confusing them by continuously changing the form and focus of the data.
• Have the State Auditor run performance assessments on those responsible for keeping the IT system or maintenance contracts (or whatever else is involved) up to date. It may be time to actually fire someone.
• Once you have competence and motivation on board, begin working on a written plan on “what” and “how” to report during the second wave, third wave, etc., until a vaccine is available.
• When the wave hits, follow the plan.

Motivation and initiative deficiencies

We assume that the MSDH purchasing guidelines are similar to those ignored by the Mississippi Department of Human Services when over 90 Million dollars were misused. Someone with initiative could, by now, have gone to a big box store and bought a computer adequate to keep track of all the basic COVID-19 statistics needed to keep the general public informed.

A “Motivation and Initiative Required” section would be a good addition to the job descriptions of folks hired (and elected) to look after the interests of vulnerable Mississippians and of state and national taxpayers.

This current crisis of available public health information is just the most recent symptom of Mississippi’s chronic deficiencies.

What is “legacy software,” anyway? 

For more information on the state’s problems with data reporting: https://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2020/may/27/editors-note-dear-dr-dobbs-mississippi-needs-preci/

It’s the economy, stupid! Who are we trying to kid here?