How cities are using data to plan for COVID-19

Source: Cities Today Published: June 10, 2020

Cities have long talked about making data-driven decisions and the coronavirus crisis has brought this to the fore for those responsible for data management.

Chief Information Officers (CIOs) gathered at a recent Cities Today Institute digital roundtable noted the importance of data visualisation and analysis during the pandemic – both for residents and decision-makers within the city. Several also highlighted key obstacles to achieving data’s full potential in scenarios like this, and these issues will need to be addressed to boost future resilience.

New Orleans has been one of the US cities hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak but in recent weeks the number of new cases reported each day has continued to decline — officials say data has helped to drive this result and will be crucial going forward.

New Orleans’ Mayor, LaToya Cantrell, has consistently said the city is focused “on the data, not the date,” when it comes to decision-making. This includes not only phased re-opening in the short-term but also future events as far out as next year.

Kimberly W. LaGrue, Chief Information Officer, City of New Orleans, shared how the Mayor’s Office set up a data ‘war room’ to understand exactly what data was required by key players in the COVID-19 response effort, such as the health department and public safety staff.