New Technology Being Used This Mosquito Season
Created on Friday, 08 April 2011 15:16
Contact: Collette DuValle, 317-221-2463
The inclusion of new technology will make the Marion County Public Health Department’s Mosquito Control program even more efficient, a frightening thought for the local mosquito population. The Vector Control Management System (VCMS) is being used for the first time this year.
The new software application, using hand held field devices, will eliminate paper reports and decrease the time between data collection and data input.
This will allow the staff to spend more time on traditional services including larviciding, adulticiding, monitoring, stocking ponds with mosquito fish and providing mosquito prevention information to the community.
“What makes this so valuable is that instead of completing their tasks and marking their reports on paper, technicians will enter the data into the hand held device. When the technicians return to base, they will upload the information via our new WiFi connection. This has typically been a full time job for someone on our staff,” so it has an immediate, tangible impact,” said Mosquito Control Administrator Chuck Dulla.
Another efficiency is how complaint calls from the public are processed. With the new technology, the caller’s name and address is directly entered into the system (if they had previously called – it will automatically find the address). In most instances, the system can cross reference the location and place it in the appropriate zone for quick response. Any additional information will also be attached to the address.
VCMS will provide additional reporting capabilities for the Mosquito Control program. Converting to the new software was an often challenging experience, especially incorporating more than 30 years of historical data. This information includes all of the sites that have been found to breed of mosquitoes based on weather conditions and the species of the mosquitoes associated with those conditions.
