Montgomery County, PA - 911 Calls and COVID-19 Exploratory Data Analysis
This is a work in progress. Please check in regularly for more updated plots. I try to update this page at least twice a week or more.
Historical Trends In 911 Calls From 2017 To Present For Select Complaints
Fever
Very notable spike in calls at the beginning of 2020 compared to previous years. Scroll down to see a more focused plot specific for 2020 calls. The ongoing drop in calls is concerning because it may imply people are now reluctant to call 911 and go to hospital for fear of getting exposed to COVID-19. We see a slight pick-up beginning of May, will be interesting to see if it starts to trend up again.
Respiratory Emergencies
A very slight increase here which surprised me. I was expecting to see a much higher spike considering the initial understanding of SARS-CoV2 to be a respiratory virus.
Cardiac Emergencies
No noticeable spike here around COVID-19. However, the ongoing drop in calls is very concerning because it may imply people are now reluctant to call 911 and go to hospital for fear of getting exposed to COVID-19. This trend is now being reported in the media as well (see references section below)
Cardiac Arrests
Fairly consistent.
Medical Alert Alarms
A noticeable increase in medic alert alarms starting late 2019, may be completely unrelated but would be interesting to triangulate and see if most of these are from nursing home locations?
All EMS related Calls
A drop off in all EMS calls, likely both a strong reflection of the quarantine measures and of people not wanting to go to hospital due to fear of contracting Sars-CoV-2? (See linked media article in the references section.)
Traffic-related incidents
A total drop off in 911 calls for traffic-related, likely a strong reflection of the quarantine measures, fewer people out and about.
SINCE PRESUMED START OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Narrowing down the focus on the data to just 2020, from around the presumed start of COVID-19 spread in the US.
Comparing Calls for Fever with Confirmed Cases
Exploring the correlation between number of calls for fever and number of confirmed cases we see a lag in the trends which may be indicative of the delay between when COVID-19 may have started affecting people in the area vs when confirmation of diagnosis (not an individual basis but from a general big-picture perspective)
DATA SOURCES:
- COVID-19 Case Numbers - John Hopkins University
- Montgomery County EMS Data - Compiled and provided by Mike Chirico
REFERENCES:
- The New Pandemic Threat: People May Die Because They’re Not Calling 911
- Eerie Emptiness Of ERs Worries Doctors: Where Are The Heart Attacks And Strokes?
Last Updated:
## [1] "2020-08-27 07:31:49 EDT"