Grantee-specific Examples on Using Epidemiological Data for Planning, Decision-making, and Dissemination

• Assisting your target audiences (e.g. communities, prevention practitioners, legislators) in understanding, using, and disseminating epidemiological data findings is just as critical as conducting data-guided needs assessment and prioritization. However, there is no 'one size that fits all' when it comes to helping your target audiences make sense of data. You need to consider your target audience need, capacity, and context in order to come up with an effective way of communicating and disseminating epidemiological data findings. Below are some grantee-specific examples on using epidemiological data.

• State-specific Interactive Data Systems

  Several states have created interactive data systems to make data more readily available to their communities. These online tools, often referred to as data warehouses or data dashboards, provide one-stop shopping for data hunters, enabling users to find and compare data across multiple communities and counties.

  To access these state-specific data systems, go to https://www.samhsa.gov/capt/tools-learning-resources/interactive-data-systems

• Arizona's Community Data Project

  Arizona's Community Data Project-a searchable database containing state and local substance abuse-related data - puts vital information into the hands of communities, practitioners, and policymakers. This "one-stop shopping" website provides easy and immediate access to the data users need to make prevention and policy decisions that are timely, well-informed, and most likely to have a positive impact.

  To read more about Arizona's Community Data Project, go to https://www.samhsa.gov/capt/tools-learning-resources/arizonas-community-data-project-makes-data-accessible

• Using Emergency Department Data to Prioritize Prevention Efforts in Louisiana

  Louisiana's State Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup (SEOW) is taking advantage of existing emergency department data to improve substance use services across the state. Using a system put in place in 2011, the Louisiana Office of Public Health (OPH) has begun sharing aggregate data with the SEOW on substance use patterns and trends to determine how events such as natural disasters impact substance use and related behavioral health problems. These analyses will have statewide impact, allowing public health agencies to prioritize prevention efforts and target those populations in greatest need.

  To read more about Louisiana's efforts, go to https://www.samhsa.gov/capt/tools-learning-resources/data-help-louisiana-prioritize-prevention-efforts