Recommendations for Syndromic Surveillance Using Inpatient and Ambulatory EHR Data

Introduction MUse will make EHR data increasingly available for public health surveillance. For Stage 2, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations will require hospitals and offer an option for eligible professionals to provide electronic syndromic surveillance data to public health. Together, these data can strengthen public health surveillance capabilities and population health outcomes (Figure 1). To facilitate the adoption and effective use of these data to advance population health, public health priorities and system capabilities must shape standards for data exchange. Input from all stakeholders is critical to ensure the feasibility, practicality, and, hence, adoption of any recommendations and data use guidelines.