Survey responses A total of 366 people participated in the survey, which corresponds to a response rate of 15.3%. Only 66 people completed the entire survey. As a result, the number of answers varied between questions. The number of respondents is indicated in the results and titles of the figures and tables. Most of the participants worked in public health, data science, epidemiology or business intelligence. Respondents' positions in their organizations = 129), analysts and officers in their specialties , managers , public health consultants , leaders and lead roles 11.6) includes. ) and public health deputy directors and managers . All nine UKHSA sites were represented among responders . Of those who stated that they worked , 44.4% were in the provincial assemblies , 31.0% in the unitary administrations, 19.0% in the district assemblies and 1.4% He worked as Health Protected. Teams or Public Health England centers . How are UKHSA OST outputs used? The most frequently used OST outputs were the LA Report and the Regional Situational Awareness Report . More than 70% of contributors used them daily or weekly . The most frequently used sections in LA Reports are case characteristics, case rates, and test metrics . More than 40% of respondents rated case characteristics and case rates as "very helpful", as did more than 30% of respondents to questions about test measurements, geographic context, and death and hospitalizations . The Joint Situational Awareness Team and Epislide reports were used less frequently . Figure 1 Frequency of Local Authorities using the five UKHSA Outbreak Monitoring Team reports . For a description of the reports please see the supplementary material, Table S1 Full size Figure 2 Frequency of Local Governments using each part of the SA Report . For description of LA report please see supplementary material, Table S2 Full size Figure 3 How useful were the resources included in the LA Report? . For description of LA report please see supplementary material, Table S2 Full size The frequency with which reports were consulted was not related to the local burden of SARS-CoV-2 cases less than 5% of respondents used reports surveyed only when cases were high . The reports provided the LAs with additional context for the local epidemiology of COVID-19 and became a resource for the charts and figures that LAs added to local reports and presentations . For example, more than 50% of respondents consulted the Regional SAR Report, LA Report, and Daily Regional Reports for daily information on local developments in the outbreak . This knowledge was also used to develop control and intervention strategies, such as promoting diagnostic services and using face masks at school. However, some respondents indicated that they started using UKHSA COVID-19 Situational Awareness Research Portal data instead of OST reports. Table 1 Use of UKHSA Outbreak Monitoring Team reports by Local Authorities Full size table How have local reports of SARS-CoV-2 affected response strategies? Most people used the LA Report , the Regional SAR , and the Biweekly report to make decisions within their organization . More than 40% used JSAT and Epislide reports for this purpose. Surveillance resources were also used as an evidence base to inform response strategies and answer questions. Of the 63 respondents, 68% encouraged changes to their COVID-19 response strategies as a result of the information presented in the reports. Reports have affected the timing of interventions; targeted communication and diagnostic testing; support specific areas and populations by providing mobile testing sites; and guidance on the provision of tests in schools and the use of non-pharmaceutical interventions such as face masks. Figure 4 Proportion of contributors who use the information provided in the reports to inform decision-making in their organization. For a description of the reports please see the supplementary material, Table S1 Full size Up-to-dateness of the information contained in the reports Most respondents felt that the content of surveillance was flexible and responsive to the evolving demands of epidemic response. However, the timeliness of content updates and, as a result, the ability to obtain up-to-date insight into pandemic developments varied between reports 56% considered revisions to JSAT reports timely. 81% for regional SARs. Some stakeholders were concerned that the latest census estimates used to calculate case rates by ethnicity were out of date. As a result, recent changes in the local population profile were not reflected in the announced estimates. It was also felt that the provision of vaccination data was delayed and the decrease in reporting frequency over time affected local reporting. Additional data requirements not included in reports Of the 57 respondents, 44% suggested that additional information would be useful to support decision making in the fall of 2021. Of those who requested additional indicators or information , 44% requested vaccination and hospitalization data, and 24%, respectively. It was also suggested that information from test history, repeated infections, ethnicity, infection during pregnancy, underlying health conditions, school absenteeism, and wastewater testing could be included. future developments OST surveillance reports were generated in an automated format from once a day to once a week. However, as the demand for information developed, some local organizations developed their own in-house epidemiological intelligence reports alongside OST resources. Launched in December 2020, the COVID-19 Situational Awareness Explorer Portal provides access to interactive data and underlying databases, providing greater flexibility in the way information is processed and distributed to local decision makers. The COVID-19 Situational Awareness Explorer Portal was used by 70% of respondents. Dashboard and local reporting systems were used by some participants as primary sources of information. Of the 56 respondents, 89% said their organization's information needs would be met if LA Reports were included on the dashboard. However, 10.7% expressed concerns about this strategy and problems they faced with limited access to the clipboard, the time it took to navigate the interface and find information, and the limited choice of file formats available when saving. information. Incidents of late updating of daily data causing delays in responding to new cases were also cited as a challenge among users. Gotopnews.com