Wuhan COVID deaths, cases jump after data review

The Wuhan municipal headquarters for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic prevention and control in China on Friday issued a notification on revising the numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases and fatalities in the city. 

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wuhan as at April 16 was revised up by 325 to 50,333 and the number of fatalities up by 1,290 to 3,869.

Why there were data discrepancies: 

1. A surging number of patients at the early stage of the epidemic overwhelmed medical resources and the admission capacity of medical institutions. Some patients died at home without having been treated in hospitals. 

2. During the height of their treating efforts, hospitals were operating beyond their capacities and medical staff were preoccupied with saving and treating patients, resulting in belated, missed and mistaken reporting. 

3. Due to a rapid increase of designated hospitals for treating COVID-19 patients, including those administered by ministries, Hubei Province, Wuhan city and its districts, those affiliated to companies, as well as private hospitals and makeshift hospitals, a few medical institutions were not linked to the epidemic information network and failed to report their data in time. 

4. The registered information of some of the deceased patients was incomplete, and there were repetitions and mistakes in the reporting.

The Wuhan municipal headquarters for the COVID-19 epidemic said the  discrepancies were identified by a group for epidemic-related big data and epidemiological investigations. 

"Municipal authorities for health, disease control, public security, civil affairs, judicial affairs and statistics have pooled their efforts to compare the COVID-19 case information in the Wuhan municipal COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control big data system, the municipal funeral service system, the municipal hospital authority's COVID-19 information system, and the municipal novel coronavirus nucleic acid test system to remove double-counted cases and fill in missed cases," said a spokesperson.

Aiming to leave no COVID-19 case undocumented, the authorities have worked to collect full information from all epidemic-related locations, including fever clinics, hospitals, makeshift hospitals, quarantine sites, communities with COVID-19 cases, and special sites administered by public security, judicial and civil affairs authorities such as prisons, detention centers and elderly care centers, collect full personal information on all COVID-19 cases, and screen and verify every case with health institutions, communities and neighbourhoods, primary-level police stations, employers and families of COVID-19 patients. 

Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.