IEM’s COVID-19 Projection Dashboard: Integrating AI & GIS Technologies
Artificial intelligence (AI) and geographic information system (GIS) technologies are integral to the coronavirus response in their ability to synthesize and display data to inform decision makers and the public on the status of infection rates across the country. The technologies pool large quantities of data in the form of modeling projections as well as interactive mapping applications/dashboards that are vital to visualize and track the spread of the virus, aiding scientists, public health professionals, and government officials in their response efforts to determine where cases are increasing and predict future trends and resource needs.
IEM’s COVID-19 Projection Dashboard integrates AI and GIS technologies to forecast or predict new coronavirus cases across the country by applying AI and machine learning to confirmed coronavirus cases at the state and county level. The Dashboard serves as a resource to generate a better understanding of where coronavirus hotspots are occurring within each state and provide an accurate seven day estimation of future cases to aid response efforts.
IEM’s COVID-19 Dashboard features multiple interactive display options, including National and State Heatmaps that capture historical and 7-day forecast data at the county level (where information is available) in contrasting colors to show the severity and progression of COVID-19 cases over time. Users can select a specific county to view its confirmed coronavirus cases in the past seven days and, if available, IEM’s projected estimates for the next seven days in the Dashboard’s County Pane.
The Dashboard also provides a list of the Top 20 counties with the most cases to easily identify where outbreak hotspots are occurring across the country.
The COVID-19 projections conveyed in the dashboard utilize IEM’s AI-based disease model to best predict the likelihood of new COVID-19 cases during the next seven days. IEM’s projections are produced daily and are generated to inform state and local leaders and their public health teams to better prepare for an increase in hospitalizations, plan for and locate drive-through testing facilities, and to determine where increased levels of transmission may be occurring. Our AI model provides accurate seven-day projections that are typically within 10%—often within 5%—of actual confirmed cases.
“IEM has generated daily coronavirus modeling forecasts since March and providing it pro bono to state and local leaders across the nation,” said Sid Baccam, IEM’s Manager of Emerging Technologies. “We received positive feedback from state and local stakeholders on the quality of information the modeling is providing them, and we are proud to share our data with a wider audience through the Dashboard. We hope the information conveyed will continue to be used as a reliable source to help bolster the coronavirus response both locally and nationally.”
IEM’s Coronavirus Modeling Projections earned the Washington Technology’s 2020 Industry Innovator Award.
To view IEM’s COVID-19 Projection Dashboard, please visit https://iem-modeling.com/.
