Public Health Ontario Launches New Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool

In order to streamline and enhance respiratory virus surveillance reporting, Public Health Ontario (PHO) has released the new Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool, an interactive report that provides a comprehensive view of respiratory virus activity in Ontario, including COVID-19, influenza, and other respiratory viruses.

This new tool provides a centralized resource of respiratory virus surveillance data to support integrated population health monitoring. As a result, the following PHO resources have been discontinued, with information integrated into the new Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool:

• Ontario COVID-19 Data Tool
• Ontario Respiratory Pathogen Bulletin
• Respiratory Virus Overview in Ontario report

What is included in the tool?

The Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool provides comprehensive epidemiological information on respiratory virus activity in Ontario, including COVID-19, influenza and other respiratory viruses. Explore respiratory virus data including weekly case trends, laboratory testing, and outbreaks. The tool also contains additional COVID-19-specific data including: outcomes (hospitalizations, deaths, and ICU and hospital bed occupancy) and COVID-19 vaccination and dose administration. 

The tool is organized into five tabs and includes the following information:

What are some of the key features of the tool?

• The new tool contains comprehensive respiratory virus surveillance data and allows users to access this data all in one place:
  • Filter and compare respiratory viruses over time by a number of different filter options, including (but not limited to): virus, surveillance period, public health unit, age and sex, and setting.
  • Access historical data to see and compare trends. For most respiratory viruses, data are available for ten surveillance periods: nine years of historical data, plus data for the current surveillance period. Data for COVID-19 starts from January 2020.
• Download data in the tool by hovering over a graph, select the three dots that appear and choose to export the data in the graph or view the data in the graph as a table.
• There are tooltips embedded throughout. Hover over any data point on a graph and a tooltip will appear with more information about that data point.
• To learn more about the features of the tool and how to use them, download the Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool User Guide.

 Where does the respiratory data in the Tool come from?

• The tool integrates data from several different sources including:
  • COVID-19 case, outcome, and outbreak data: Provincial COVID-19 Case and Contact Management System (CCM), as well as Ontario Ministry of Health’s Hospital Daily Bed Census and Critical Care Information System
  • Influenza case and respiratory virus outbreak data: Integrated Public Health Information System (iPHIS)
  • Laboratory testing data: PHO Laboratory Information Management System, Provincial COVID-19 Diagnostic Network, Public Health Agency of Canada’s Centre for Immunization and Respiratory Infectious Diseases
  • COVID-19 vaccination data:COVaxON Vaccination Management System

How often will the new Tool be updated?

• The tool is updated every Friday and includes data up to the previous Saturday. One exception is that COVID-19 vaccination data in the ‘COVID-19 Vaccines’ tab are updated every four weeks on Fridays.

Can I still access old versions of the Ontario COVID-19 Data Tool, Ontario Respiratory Pathogen Bulletin and Respiratory Virus Overview in Ontario report?

• Data previously found in the Ontario COVID-19 Data Tool and Ontario Respiratory Pathogen Bulletin have been integrated into the new tool.
• For archived versions of the Respiratory Virus Overview in Ontario report, please visit the Archive of Respiratory Virus Overview in Ontario Epidemiological Summary page.

What can I do if I can’t find the information that I am looking for?

• If you can’t find the information you are looking for, please email your questions to healthprotection@oahpp.ca.
• We will also be offering an online demo of the tool in the fall. Keep an eye on our Events page for more details.