Waukesha County Enhances Hospital Capacity Data on COVID-19 Dashboard
On Wednesday, November 18, 2020, enhancements to Waukesha County’s Hospital Capacity tab on its COVID-19 dashboard went live. The updates include new visualizations to provide residents and community leaders better context for how COVID-19 hospitalizations, bed use, and ventilator use, impact the healthcare system in the County.
“As COVID-19 cases rise, our goal is to help community leaders and residents make informed decisions related to the pandemic,” said Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow. “We believe that improving understanding of current hospital capacity at the county level can help everyone recognize how the virus impacts our greater health systems as we work to mitigate the pandemic in Waukesha County.”
Dashboard Adds Capacity Thresholds
The update visualizes the upper and lower thresholds of total hospital capacities of intensive care unit (ICU) beds; acute beds, which accommodate short-term hospital patients; and ventilators in use at hospitals in Waukesha County. Previously, the Hospital Capacity section of the dashboard only showed current percentage of use in those categories.
Hospital metrics are updated on the dashboard every Wednesday, no later than 3:00 pm CST. Hospital metrics reflect 7-day averages for Advocate Aurora, Ascension, Froedtert Health, and ProHealth Care hospitals in Waukesha County. Data, including capacity ranges, is provided directly from the hospital systems and the Southeast Wisconsin Healthcare Emergency Readiness Coalition (HERC Region 7). Capacity ranges may be increased if hospitals enact surge capacity protocols.
Other Dashboard Updates
Waukesha County continues to update its COVID-19 dashboard to improve its functionality and display features for the public.
On Wednesday, new data automation features were also fully implemented. These behind the scenes changes are in addition to an upgrade completed to improve readability and data points regarding COVID-19 in the community. Additional updates are expected later this year. The dashboard and more information about Waukesha County’s COVID-1-9 response is available at www.waukeshacounty.gov/covid19.
###
