New El Dorado County COVID-19 interactive dashboard

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - A new interactive dashboard is now available for COVID-19 tracking in El Dorado County. The new feature is a more comprehensive dashboard that provides additional data points and opportunity for the public to learn how the COVID-19 virus is impacting the area in both Spanish and English.

“Until recently, we have been relatively mildly impacted by COVID-19 compared to many of the Sacramento region counties in terms of the level of the virus in El Dorado County,” said Public Health Officer, Dr. Nancy Williams. “As we have seen our case numbers rise and the issue become more complex on the state level, we
felt it was time to provide additional information on our dashboard and make it more interactive and less static.”

Some of the new features of the dashboard include:
• Chart of cases by day since COVID first appeared in El Dorado County.
• Rate of new cases per 100,000 population over the most recent 14-day period, with color-coded levels of concern
• Percent positivity of tests over the most recent seven- and 14-day periods
• Average number of test results received per 100,000 population over the most recent 14-day period
• Rate of new cases per 100,000 population by geographic region, with color-coded levels of concern

Additionally, the dashboard provides narrative explanation of many of the data points and analyses for easier understanding and in an effort to answer questions the public may have about the changes.

The new dashboard no longer includes the total number of people tested in El Dorado County, but viewers can add the number of laboratory-confirmed cases to the number of negative results to reach the total approximate number of El Dorado County residents tested.

“While we know there will be a period of getting accustomed to the new format, we believe this will be a more useful product for the public to better understand the current and historic status of COVID-19 in our County,” said Williams. “The new dashboard will make obvious the recent dramatic increase in cases that occurred over the past few weeks. With fall just around the corner and the need for students to return to school, it is more critical than ever for everyone in the County to understand that community and individual behaviors are driving these
higher case rates,” Williams added. “One of the key factors school districts should be considering prior to opening is how many current COVID-19 infections we have in the community. It is everyone’s responsibility to take precautions to limit the spread of this virus. If we fail to take this responsibility seriously as a community, more COVID infections will occur, making it less likely that schools can open for in-person learning.”

“The best piece of information we can give residents and visitors alike continues to be to avoid gathering with people outside your household, wear face coverings, maintain at least a six-foot distance from others and wash your hands frequently. These measures have been proven to reduce the likelihood of getting and
transmitting this serious virus. They are easy to do and will allow us to do the things that really matter, like attend school, go to work and keep our businesses open, while avoiding the imposition of more serious and detrimental restrictions,” she added.

The dashboard can be found here and on the Cases icon on the COVID-19 web page at https://www.edcgov.us/Government/hhsa/Pages/EDCCOVID-19-Cases.aspx.

For answers to frequently asked questions, visit here - https://www.edcgov.us/Government/hhsa/Documents/COVID19%20FAQ%20re%20new%20dashboard%207-24-20.pdf