Online Epidemiology: RUSICK2

surfinbox writes "Forbes magazine print edition mentions Michigan State University's online epidemiology site called RUSICK2. If you get sick from a probable food bourne bug, log in to RUSICK2 and report where you ate and when. When they start to see a pattern, they can take action to prevent further illness. I love the RUSICK2 logo!"

Comments

My favorite area of the site

[dman123]

From http://rusick2.msu.edu/hackers.asp

Entering incorrect or humorous data is very easy. For example, you will find that the system readily accepts reports of getting sick eating "Goc" at the new Klingon restaurant in town, or most anything else that you can imagine. However, this particular web site is trying to help prevent the 5,000 to 8,000 deaths that occur each year due to foodborne disease. Please respect the important mission of the Forum by insuring that your submissions are accurate and well based on fact. It is also important to remember that all site visitors are on notice that submitted data will be shared with U.S., local, and state health departments; Forum users who submit false information may therefore be subject to civil or criminal liability for such acts.

Forget the restaurant reviews

[G4from128k]

Now when I go to a strange town, I don't need to use Zagat's to find a good restaurant anymore. I just need to search RUSICK2. No hits = good eats (or at least nontoxic eats). OK, I guess I still need Zagat's, but RUSICK is a good cross-reference.

The service does have many sources of error. Illness does not always immediately follow consumption (I've seen reports that bad seafood can cause symptoms 2-3 days after eating). Thus, I would suspect that some reports will erroneously correlate sickness with the most recent meal.

I also wonder if this service will survive litigation. I can imagine some arrogant chef hiring a laywer to go after RUSICK2 for libel.