Single Source of Truth for COVID-19 Incidence Data

Starschema offers a single source of truth, free analytics-ready data set that collates epidemiological data from COVID-19 cases as reported by public health authorities worldwide.

Snowflake and Starschema lists a free-of-charge, public data set to serve as a single-source of truth on the incidence and mortality of COVID-19 cases on Snowflake’s free-to-join marketplace, the Snowflake Data Exchange.

The data may help organizations assess contingency plans and make informed, data-driven decisions in real-time as they respond to the global health emergency.

Snowflake Head of Data Exchange Matt Glickman says its platform enabled Starschema to amass the epidemiological data from multiple sources into a cohesive single-source-of-truth, while also allowing for the enrichment of that data with relevant information like population densities and geolocation.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, we can expect data to play an increasingly important role in both public and private operations. It’s essential organizations have access to accurate, near real-time data in this rapidly evolving environment and we’re humbled that the platform architecture is uniquely positioned to help democratize access to Starschema’s data in this time of need,” says Glickman.

The new Starschema data set claims to eliminate the need, and challenges associated with, cleaning and preparing the data. Public and private sector data consumers will have access to the data in an easy-to-use, analytics-ready format, so they can quickly build new models and applications.

The Snowflake Data Exchange claims to be a secure, fully-governed platform for sharing and exchanging data, that allows Starschema to seamlessly share data on COVID-19 in near real-time with organizations in the public and private sectors.

Organizations can connect to the Data Exchange from within their Snowflake account for seamless integration of the COVID-19 incidence data set and fast query processing.

Commenting on the free offering, Starschema CTO Tamas Foldi says with its COVID-19 incidence data set, public health authorities have access to phylogenetic studies to reference and identify whether particular strains of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease, carry a higher risk.

Governments may also be able to make informed data-driven decisions for civil contingency planning based on data from neighboring states. In the private sector, enterprises can use the data to support business contingency operations and analyze supply chains for possible vulnerabilities.

“Everyone is dealing with the effects of COVID-19 in one way or another. Our goal is to deliver the highest quality data sound enough to stake lives on, with the utmost transparency. Snowflake is helping us deliver on that goal so public health professionals, contingency planners, and enterprises can best respond to this global epidemic,” says Foldi.

(Ed. You can request access to the free, public Starschema COVID-19 incidence data set on the Snowflake Data Exchange here.)