CitationsAdd new citationList by: CiterankMap Link[3] Mobility Changes in Ontario - Mobility Tool: Technical document
Author: Rafal Kustra Publication date: August 2021 Cited by: David Price 2:05 PM 15 September 2022 GMT URL:
| Excerpt / Summary The creation of the Mobility Changes in Ontario – Mobility Tool (Mobility Tool) allows users to generate graphs displaying overall mobility changes in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020 to present). The purpose of this document is to describe the technical aspects of the Mobility Tool.
COVID-19 is a respiratory illness that is transmitted through the spread of the virus SARS-CoV2. SARS-CoV-2 spreads between people who are in close contact with each other, through respiratory droplets and aerosols projected by the infected person. Because aerosols can remain suspended in air and travel farther than one metre, SARS-CoV-2 is spread in crowded indoor settings or areas with poor ventilation.
To limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the Government of Ontario implemented various measures, such as stay-at-home orders, to restrict close contact of individuals outside of their own household. Mobility data collected from cell phones can provide information on changes in movement in Ontario. This data is important for a retrospective understanding of travel patterns since the start of the pandemic and when Ontario enacted lock-down orders (March 2020). It may also provide a deeper understanding of travel patterns to better prepare for any future pandemics of this kind.
The Mobility Tool can be used for:
• Planning and needs assessment: For example, the tool can be used to investigate which regions are more responsive to mobility-restriction policies;
• Monitoring of mobility changes: For example the tool can be used to compare mobility patterns between regions experiencing a significant disease outbreak, and those that are not, to better understand the factors underlying the outbreak;
• Resource allocation: For example, the tool can be used to plan for resources to provide necessary support in communities less responsive to mobility-restriction policy changes;
• Research: The tool can be used in the initial stages of hypothesis formulation. For example, to understand whether differences in mobility patterns may be correlated to the social and demographic make-up of a health unit such as income, rurality, or visible minority.
This document outlines the data sources, methods and instructions on how to use the data in the tool including how to cite the tool as well as contact information for further questions. |
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