Though fee is mirrored in another way, unfold stays at elevated ranges
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 2, 2021
COLUMBIA, S.C. —The South Carolina Division of Well being and Environmental Management (DHEC) in the present day introduced a change in the way in which % optimistic is calculated for COVID-19 circumstances. The change will permit South Carolina % optimistic calculations to be extra simply in comparison with these utilized by federal entities, together with the Heart for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC).
Beginning in the present day, DHEC is now reporting % optimistic utilizing the tests-over-tests technique. P.c optimistic is now calculated by dividing all optimistic COVID-19 checks by the overall variety of COVID-19 checks (optimistic and adverse), after which multiplying the outcome by 100 to get a %.
With the change, the general public will discover a giant drop within the quantity representing % optimistic. That doesn’t imply the extent of unfold locally has decreased. P.c optimistic will seem like decrease solely as a result of it’s calculated in another way.
Not solely will DHEC use this new technique going ahead, however it’ll return and recalculate the % optimistic for the whole time COVID-19 has been tracked in South Carolina. Anybody wishing to see what the previous knowledge appeared like can go to this hyperlink: https://scdhec.gov/websites/default/recordsdata/media/doc/COVID19-Archived-P.c-Constructive.pdf.
State Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell mentioned you will need to notice that when altering strategies, you can not evaluate info from the previous technique (folks over folks) with the brand new technique (checks over checks). “It is crucial that individuals perceive that whereas % optimistic seems as a smaller quantity below the brand new method of calculating the speed, COVID-19 continues to unfold at an elevated stage in our state. That smaller quantity is solely based mostly on the change in the way in which we calculate the speed,” Dr. Bell mentioned.
“It is crucial that South Carolinians proceed to take steps we all know to guard us all from this lethal illness: put on a masks constantly and appropriately, keep six toes away from others, wash your palms incessantly, and keep away from crowds. And when your time comes, get vaccinated,” Dr. Bell added.
New Calculation Permits for Larger Information Comparability
With many federal companies and state well being departments utilizing the tests-over-tests technique, this variation by DHEC will permit comparisons with % positivity calculations supplied by the CDC, The White Home Coronavirus Job Drive, Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Providers (CMS), different tutorial establishments and lots of states. In December, CMS started requiring well being care services to make use of take a look at over take a look at; DHEC started getting ready for the change at the moment.
Understanding How Precent Positivity is Calculated
Beforehand, DHEC had been calculating % optimistic utilizing the people-over-tests technique. That required dividing the variety of folks with optimistic outcomes by the quantity of people that had taken checks general, which included optimistic and adverse outcomes.
DHEC determined to make use of this technique early within the pandemic as a result of the main target was on figuring out new individuals who had been testing optimistic. This turns into more durable to do when a lot of the inhabitants has been examined. With the continued suggestion for South Carolinians to be examined incessantly, the shift from folks to checks additionally turns into a simpler technique to watch energetic circumstances.
“The positivity fee helps public well being officers decide the extent at which COVID-19 is spreading locally and whether or not sufficient testing is happening,” mentioned Dr.Bell. “The speed supplies us a snapshot of how a lot COVID-19 is circulating locally at a given time period.”
What Does P.c Positivity Inform Us about Neighborhood Unfold?
P.c optimistic can be excessive if the variety of optimistic checks is excessive, or if the variety of complete checks is low. The next % optimistic suggests larger unfold and that there are seemingly extra folks with COVID-19 locally who haven’t been examined.
P.c positivity doesn’t replicate an entire image of COVID-19 in South Carolina. Whereas it tells us some details about illness unfold, different elements are at work as properly, together with entry to testing and the way shortly outcomes come again from the lab. No single measure can provide an entire image of COVID-19 unfold in our state and our counties.
For info on COVID-19 % optimistic charges in South Carolina, go to the testing tab within the county-level dashboard.
