Frequently Asked Questions
When and why was this dashboard created?
The first version of this dashboard was shared publicly on March 30, 2020. It was developed to provide researchers, public health authorities and the general public in the Kansas City region with a user-friendly tool to track the COVID-19 pandemic as it unfolds.
How often is the dashboard updated?
The cases, tests and deaths data is maintained each day between 5-8 p.m. through a combination of manual and automated updates. Hospitalization data for the previous day is updated on weekdays between 7-8 a.m. and on weekends before 2 p.m. The date of the latest update is noted on the bottom of the homepage of the dashboard. Occasional maintenance can result in slower updates.
What data sources inform the dashboard?
- All cases, tests and deaths data collected and displayed are freely available through city, county and state government sites, health department sites, or hospital sites. Where possible, MARC prioritizes collecting cases, tests, and deaths data published by the local health authorities. Where that is not possible or reasonable, data is collected from state sources.
- All hospitalization data including counts of patients, hospital resource use and supply levels come from Health and Human Services. Prior to July 15, 2020, this data was collected from the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) and since then the source has been Teletracking.
- The layer from Johns Hopkins University is created and maintained by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). This feature layer is supported by ESRI Living Atlas team and JHU data services. The data sources for the JHU layer includes the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, 1point3acres, Worldometers.info, BNO, state and national government heath departments, local media reports, and the DXY, one of the world’s largest online communities for physicians, health care professionals, pharmacies and facilities. This layer is open to the public and free to share.
- Occasionally, the source for a particular jurisdiction or indicator is changed to ensure the most timely and accurate data. Users will be alerted to those changes on the COVID-19 Data Hub Updates Blog.
Can we embed this dashboard in our own site?
Absolutely! Here’s the embed code:
<iframe src="https://marc2.org/covidhub/" frameborder="0" style="overflow:hidden;overflow-x:hidden;overflow-y:hidden;height:100%;width:100%;position:absolute;top:0px;left:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px" height="100%" width="100%"></iframe>
Why isn’t there data for recovered cases?
The total number of recovered cases is currently only partially reported for some of the counties in our region. When researchers determine there is a reliable source to provide such information in a real-time, comprehensive manner, we will consider adding recovered numbers.
Does the dashboard have data on age, gender, nationality and other demographic information?
No. We are looking into adding this information.
Why does the data on the Regional COVID-19 Data Hub differ from data on other websites?
This website relies upon publicly available data from multiple sources that do not always agree. Each source is updated at different frequencies and may contain other differences in how the data is collected, investigated or calculated.
Does the website provide medical guidance?
No. Reliance on the website for medical guidance or use of the website in commerce is strictly prohibited. The Mid-America Regional Council and Johns Hopkins University hereby disclaim any and all representations and warranties with respect to the website, including accuracy, fitness for use and merchantability.
Who can I talk to for more information about the dashboard?
General questions about the Regional COVID-19 Data Hub should be directed to covidhub@marc.org.
Timely information about the day-to-day collection, calculation and publishing of the data can be found on the COVID-19 Data Hub Updates Blog.