In the beginning it was a lifeline, an organized collection of facts amid a swirl of coronavirus uncertainty and misinformation.
Feels like this is going to be another day where its a battle to do anything while staring at the Johns Hopkins dashboard, an editor in Michigan tweeted on April 13, 2020, along with a screenshot of the global death toll to date at that time: 114,983.
Nearly 2 years later, more than 6.5 million people have died from COVID-19, hundreds of millions of infections have been recorded, and Lauren Gardner, the Johns Hopkins engineer who led the creation of the universitys lauded COVID-19 dashboard, has been recognized with a major prize.
On Wednesday, Gardner won the 2022 Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award. Past honorees include Doctors Without Borders and Dr. Anthony Fauci.
Newsletter
Get our free Coronavirus Today newsletter
Sign up for the latest news, best stories and what they mean for you, plus answers to your questions.
Enter email address
Sign Me Up
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
Bestowed by the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation for achievement in medical science, the Lasker awards are sometimes referred to as Americas Nobels, and many honorees go on to win Nobel prizes.
The dashboard set a new standard for disseminating authoritative public health data in real time, the judges said, and cut through the noise of misinformation and became the most authoritative and trusted source of information for the COVID pandemic.
The COVID-19 dashboard: Tracking a pandemic in real time
In an ironic twist, the prize was announced while Gardner, 38, was riding out a coronavirus infection at the home in Baltimore she shares with her husband, toddler daughter and their dog. It also comes a week after Johns Hopkins announced that its scaling back the tracker due to the declining quality of data from U.S. states.
Were not magically creating any of this COVID data. Its all 100% collected from whats been publicly reported, Gardner said. With resources being diverted away from COVID-19, the accuracy and timeliness of the data simply arent what they used to be, she added, which is disheartening.
Before the pandemic, the Texas-born Gardner was an academic specializing in modeling infectious diseases. She returned from an eight-year stint at Australias University of New South Wales in 2019 to take a position as an associate professor at Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering.
In January 2020, Gardner was talking with her graduate student Ensheng Dong, who had been worriedly checking for updates on family in Chinas Shanxi province. Gardner suggested he create a map to track the virus globally. Dong built a website in a day, and after a few tweaks it was live.
The dashboard debuted to the public later that month, when the majority of people in the U.S. were still blithely going about their business, with only glancing acknowledgment of the virus spreading through Wuhan, China.
In the early days, as the pair worked to import data manually, they imagined the map as a valuable tool for a relatively small community of academics and researchers monitoring the virus spread.
Then the stay-at-home orders hit. In their shock and confusion, people went searching for reliable information on the spread of a virus upending their lives. They found the Hopkins dashboard. In March 2020 the website that hosted the map, arcgis.com, registered nearly 1 billion visits.
Gardner and her students knew the work mattered. But they were shocked to realize how many people were relying on it.
We knew it was important. I knew that the data had a lot of value, because I always did work where we needed that kind of data and didnt have it, Gardner said. But I guess I didnt expect to be the sole source of it.
Johns Hopkins professor Lauren Gardner was recognized with the Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award for mobilizing her lab to quickly engineer the COVID-19 dashboard.
(Lasker Foundation)
Both the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization were overwhelmed at the pandemics start.
In the absence of a steady flow of data from reliable government sources, and with misinformation swirling on the internet, the tracker let policymakers, healthcare providers and average people make responsible decisions.
When I could see numbers rising in the U.S. and nearby states, we started to implement procedures to see our immunocompromised patients virtually and keep them protected, said Dr. Michelle Rheault, a pediatric nephrologist at the University of Minnesota childrens hospital.
While it was terrifying to watch some days, it provided the knowledge that I needed to do my job.
As COVID-19 cases multiplied around the world, so did the behind-the-scenes work to keep the dashboard going. More and more countries were reporting deaths and cases, which meant more data to gather, verify and standardize. Manual updates were no longer feasible, so the team built automated scrapers to gather data from official health databases around the world that were available to the public.
It was really just a continually adaptable system that we were having to develop, Gardner said. We were just working around the clock for that year.
When stay-at-home orders came to Maryland, the group had to disperse to home offices. (Thats also when Gardner learned she was pregnant. Her first child was born in December 2020.) Nonetheless, the dashboard kept growing.
It appeared behind President Trump at news briefings. Its figures were cited in news reports and factored into policy decisions.
The team had a rule to include only publicly available data so that anyone who wanted to could verify the dashboards sources. When state or regional agencies contacted the group privately to offer case counts they didnt want to report officially, the Johns Hopkins engineers declined.
Make it public, and then well put it on our data file, too, Gardner said she told them. But were not just accepting things behind the curtain.
Often, it worked. The bigger the tracker got, the more willing agencies were to provide data the team asked for, including race and ethnicity breakdowns. The dashboard would eventually expand to include testing and vaccination numbers.
That power, just because we had so many eyeballs, was something that was really helpful, Gardner said. But it didnt last.
As Gardner noted, its value was dependent on the quality of the data reported. As the pandemic dragged on and health budgets scaled back, mandatory testing programs ended and home tests that didnt have to be reported became more available, the quantity of good, accessible data fell.
Weve all just lived through a massive public health crisis that has underscored the value of having reliable, quality data to base decisions on. What frustrates Gardner is that we seem to be emerging from that crisis with no more willingness to ensure such data are available the next time one comes around. Basic standards for public health data reporting would go a long way, she said. If data were reported uniformly, it would be easier for the next group to gather and share in an accessible way.
The Johns Hopkins team showed that its possible. But right now, theres no rule or agency with enforcement authority to make sure that it happens.
The research is amazing. Our science is amazing, Gardner said. Our science has taken a big step up. I think the problem is the communication and translation from science to policy to the general public just has not evolved at the same rate. Weve just really dropped the ball in the second half of that.
In addition to honoring Gardner, the foundation gave this years prize for basic medical research to Richard O. Hynes, Erkki Ruoslahti and Timothy A. Springer for discoveries related to integrins, a family of cell receptors that play an important role in cell growth, migration and signaling.
Yuk Ming Dennis Lo won the award for clinical research for his discovery of fetal DNA in maternal blood, reducing the need for invasive and potentially harmful prenatal test procedures.
See the article here:
- As 2024 Travel Hits Pre-Covid Levels, Here's When To Go To Europe - Forbes - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Comparison of Impressions of COVID-19 Vaccinations Stratified by the Number of Vaccinations Among Japanese ... - Cureus - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health visits in primary care: an interrupted time series analysis from nine ... - The Lancet - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Faith and rehab keep Southwick woman on path to recovery from COVID - MassLive.com - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- China to draw on Covid-19 experience to tackle future pandemics - theSun - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Free COVID tests through USPS are ending todayhere's where to get tests online - Reviewed - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Concern about COVID reaches record low across political spectrum: Survey - The Hill - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- He Had 217 Covid Shots Without Side Effects, Study Finds - The New York Times - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- A Man Got 217 COVID-19 Vaccines. Here's What Happened - TIME - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- German man vaccinated 217 times against covid with no ill effects - The Washington Post - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Andrew Cuomo Faces House Subpoena Over Covid Deaths in Nursing Homes - The New York Times - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- It's been 4 years since COVID hit Michigan. For Long COVID patients, the pandemic isn't over. Michigan Advance - Michigan Advance - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- 4th Anniversary of the Covid-19 Pandemic - erienewsnow.com - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Reflecting on 4 years of the COVID-19 pandemic and discussing what's to come - WBUR News - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- CDC shortens 5-day COVID isolation, updates guidance on masks and testing in new 2024 recommendations - CBS News - March 10th, 2024 [March 10th, 2024]
- Father, daughter convicted in fraud related to COVID-19 relief - The Cincinnati Enquirer - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Supreme Court to weigh whether Covid misinformation is protected speech - STAT - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Oklahoma leads country in long Covid - 2 News Oklahoma KJRH Tulsa - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- MCFR firefighter dies after battle with COVID-19 - WCJB - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Audio-based AI classifiers show no evidence of improved COVID-19 screening over simple symptoms checkers - Nature.com - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Hidden death toll of COVID-19 pandemic revealed - Earth.com - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Switching arms improves effectiveness of two-dose vaccinations, OHSU study suggests - OHSU News - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Tributes paid to Irish health official 'central' to EU Covid-19 response - The Irish Times - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Court: Not wearing mask during COVID-19 health emergency isn't protected speech - Honolulu Star-Advertiser - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- One arm or two? How you get vaccinated may make a difference - The Seattle Times - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- 70% of kindergarteners didn't pass readiness test in pandemic, study estimates - University of Minnesota Twin Cities - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- USS Theodore Roosevelt sailors roam free on Guam for first time since COVID-19 outbreak - Stars and Stripes - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Pandemic linked to 14% increase in underweight children in India - Medical Xpress - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- COVID and travel: Should I still wear a mask on the plane? - USA TODAY - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Vaccine hesitancy and equity: lessons learned from the past and how they affect the COVID-19 countermeasure in ... - Globalization and Health - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Increase in STIs Among Adolescents Witnessed During COVID-19 Pandemic - Drug Topics - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- VDH: COVID deaths not seeing decline - Vermont Biz - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- US outpatient care for serious mental health issues declined during COVID-19 - University of Minnesota Twin Cities - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- COVID-19 Vaccination in a Patient With Gluten Enteropathy: A Case Report - Cureus - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- COVID-19 cases drop, but still lots of flu, RSV cases in Erie County - GoErie.com - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Lives versus livelihoods: The COVID-19 trade-off from an epidemiological-economic perspective - CEPR - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Weatherhead's Jonathan Ernest notes economic changes of childcare facilities following COVID-19 pandemic - The Daily | Case Western Reserve University - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- U.S. adults face distress, unequal mental health care access during the COVID-19 era - News-Medical.Net - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Simnotrelvir to reduces the symptoms of mild to moderate COVID-19 - 2 Minute Medicine - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Vaccine Effectiveness: Which COVID-19 Shots Offer the Most Protection? - SciTechDaily - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- New evidence confirms COVID-19 vaccination in pregnancy is safe for babies - Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Audit Committee co-chairs, Evers at odds over interest from COVID-19 funds - WisPolitics.com - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Evaluation of Olfactory Dysfunction Among COVID-19 Patients in Baghdad, Iraq - Cureus - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- COVID-19's impact on early education: Retrospective study shows decrease in kindergarten readiness - News-Medical.Net - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Rutgers researchers work on breakthrough COVID-19 treatment | Video - NJ Spotlight News - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Curious Iowa: Has the state spent all of its COVID-19 relief funding? - The Gazette - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Accelerating into Immunization Agenda 2030 with momentum from ... - Infectious Diseases of Poverty - BioMed Central - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Study Uncovers Why Young Children Suffer Less Severe COVID-19 - Technology Networks - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Wenstrup, Select Subcommittee Majority Members Investigate ... - House Committee on Oversight and Reform | - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- With COVID-19 emergency orders lifted, employers seek guidance ... - Hartford Business Journal - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Computer-aided diagnosis of chest X-ray for COVID-19 diagnosis in ... - Nature.com - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Maternal COVID-19 Vaccination, Infection Boosts Infant Antibody ... - Contagionlive.com - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Three Middlesex County Individuals Admit COVID-19 Fraud ... - Department of Justice - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Seventeen Broward Sheriff's Office Employees Charged with COVID ... - Department of Justice - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- New COVID-19 Booster and Flu Shot Available at Select Public ... - Mecklenburg County (.gov) - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Ban on COVID vaccine mandates by private businesses, including ... - The Texas Tribune - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- What Are the Side Effects of the 2023 COVID Vaccine? Experts ... - Good Housekeeping - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Covid inquiry: Bereaved families relief as High Court dismisses Cabinet Office JR - openDemocracy - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- UK health agency failed to account for 3.3bn of Covid inventory, say MPs - Financial Times - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- COVID-19 Working Paper: Obesity Prevalence Among U.S. Adult ... - usda.gov - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- California Changes Definition of COVID-19 Outbreak Easing the ... - Fisher Phillips - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- New Study Shows Robust Pandemic Preparedness Strongly Linked ... - Nuclear Threat Initiative - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- COVID-19 Infection Reduces the Risk of UTIs, Bacteremia, and ... - Contagionlive.com - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- Europe Phases Out COVID-19 Flexible Regulations - Pharmaceutical Technology Magazine - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- Travel Pains and COVID: How to Decide if You're Ready to Travel - CreakyJoints - July 6th, 2023 [July 6th, 2023]
- COVID Depression and Anxiety | Johns Hopkins Medicine - April 17th, 2023 [April 17th, 2023]
- Man declared dead due to Covid found 'shockingly' alive after 2 years in MP - Hindustan Times - April 17th, 2023 [April 17th, 2023]
- Senate votes to end Covid-19 emergency, 3 years after initial declaration - CNN - March 31st, 2023 [March 31st, 2023]
- DC COVID-19 centers closing Friday: Here's what you need to know - WJLA - March 31st, 2023 [March 31st, 2023]
- Can grade retention help with COVID-19 learning recovery in schools? - Brookings Institution - March 28th, 2023 [March 28th, 2023]
- On 3-year anniversary of COVID-19 in NC, Winston-Salem woman shares story of loss and healing after losing 2 loved ones - WXII12 Winston-Salem - March 4th, 2023 [March 4th, 2023]
- Oregon, Washington will lift mask requirements in health care settings on April 3 - KATU - March 4th, 2023 [March 4th, 2023]
- WHO says all theories for COVID origin 'remain on table' as lab leak theory gains traction - Sky News - March 4th, 2023 [March 4th, 2023]
- New COVID-19 omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 sweeping the nation, making up majority of cases - ABC Action News Tampa Bay - February 15th, 2023 [February 15th, 2023]
- Man gets 21 years in prison for stabbing wife in the Ozarks over COVID-19 stimulus check and their children - Law & Crime - February 15th, 2023 [February 15th, 2023]
- Healthline: Medical information and health advice you can trust. - January 2nd, 2023 [January 2nd, 2023]
- China can expect repeat Covid infections with new strains on the way: experts - South China Morning Post - January 2nd, 2023 [January 2nd, 2023]
- PCR tests for travellers reintroduced around the world as Covid-19 cases surge - The National - January 2nd, 2023 [January 2nd, 2023]
- Covid-19 surge after Covid-19 surge has made it impossible for US hospitals to plan for the future - Vox.com - January 2nd, 2023 [January 2nd, 2023]
- COVID-19 in China: Demand for a particular fruit rises as people seek natural remedies to fight the virus - WION - December 21st, 2022 [December 21st, 2022]