Death (mortality) data are essential for public health surveillance, supporting the analysis of death trends, calculation of outcomes like case fatality rates, and informing prevention strategies and policy decisions.  Accurate mortality information also helps case investigators prioritize efforts by identifying individuals who have died, reducing unnecessary follow-up and allowing resources to be used more efficiently.   

Accurate disability data in public health surveillance has not historically been collected in a standardized way across conditions, if collected at all. CSTE and the Data Standardization Workgroup (DSWG) agreed that a standard method of collecting this data should exist for all conditions when disability information is known or applicable, and developed standardized definitions and minimum core disability categories for the following core data elements within the Disability Data Class: 

Death (mortality) data are essential for public health surveillance, supporting the analysis of death trends, calculation of outcomes like case fatality rates, and informing prevention strategies and policy decisions.  Accurate mortality information also helps case investigators prioritize efforts by identifying individuals who have died, reducing unnecessary follow-up and allowing resources to be used more efficiently.   

Accurate disability data in public health surveillance has not historically been collected in a standardized way across conditions, if collected at all. CSTE and the Data Standardization Workgroup (DSWG) agreed that a standard method of collecting this data should exist for all conditions when disability information is known or applicable, and developed standardized definitions and minimum core disability categories for the following core data elements within the Disability Data Class: 

Public health surveillance routinely collects data on exposures, risk factors, and underlying health conditions (ERU) to understand trends in disease transmission or prevalence.  Exposures refer to specific settings, events, or activities—often including dates and locations—where a person may have encountered a cause of disease.

Hospitalization data is a key data class in public health surveillance. Information about whether a particular case of disease resulted in hospitalization and can serve as a proxy for disease severity and also improve follow up in disease investigation.

In public health surveillance, identifiers refer to specific, unique data points used to distinguish a person, record or event. Identifiers are essential for linking information within a case of a notifiable condition as well as for protecting more direct patient identity information. Different identifier types may apply depending on the condition being reported and type of data being linked.  

Immunization history data are essential for monitoring vaccine-preventable diseases and supporting public health decision-making. High-quality data help track vaccine coverage, guide outbreak response and improve understanding of how vaccination affects disease transmission, severity, and outcomes.  

The Industry and Occupation data class captures a person’s current work history, including their industry (type of business, like a hospital or restaurant), occupation (type of work, like nurse or chef), employment status, dates, and specific roles that may be relevant to a disease under investigation. Collecting work history in public health surveillance helps identify potential exposures, informs targeted workplace prevention messaging, and highlights occupational health disparities.

The collection of medication data for public health surveillance can provide insight into prescription practices, medication usage patterns, trends in medication effectiveness, and adverse drug reactions. However, medication information is not relevant to all conditions under public health surveillance. 

In public health, pregnant people and infants are considered uniquely vulnerable because they have special clinical needs. For certain conditions pregnant people have a disproportionate burden and more severe clinical disease than nonpregnant people. 

The Reporting Source data class captures information about the type of provider or laboratory that submits a case report to a public health agency. This data helps public health agencies understand where people are being diagnosed and how to target outreach and prevention efforts.  Understanding what types of facilities submit reports to public health can also provide insight into and improve disease reporting.  

Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) is a concept in public health used to describe social conditions in which people or communities live that may help identify populations at higher risk of adverse health outcomes. 

The Signs, Symptoms and Clinical Manifestations (SSCM) data class captures information about the clinical features of a disease, including objective signs observed by a clinician and subjective symptoms reported by the patient. 

The Travel data class captures information about an individual’s travel prior to or during a case under investigation, including locations visited, dates, and potential exposure periods.