LAC hosted the 2015 Special Olympics (SO) which welcomed approximately 6,500 athletes from 165 countries, as well as 30,000 volunteers and 500,000 spectators from July 25 to August 2, 2015. International athletes were not required to show proof of vaccinations and were housed in dormitories for nine days, creating potential for infectious disease outbreaks. In response to these unique public health challenges, we describe how LAC’s syndromic surveillance system (SSS), which captures over 65% of all Emergency Department (ED) visits, was used to detect potential emerging health events congruent with SO games and pre-game events.

Objective

To describe how syndromic surveillance was used to monitor health outcomes in near real-time during the 2015 Special Olympics in Los Angeles County (LAC), California.