Stats SA has introduced an online dashboard called the South Africa Covid-19 Vulnerability Index, which tracks the areas of the country that are most likely to be most vulnerable to coronavirus.
The dashboard was developed as a way to track vulnerability at the local point across the country, the smallest demographic knowledge available, combined with known threat points related to Covid-19.
The index uses knowledge from the 2011 census as well as 8 similar signs of workforce activity, media, family services, overcrowding, multigenerational prestige, age and chronic diseases to reflect citizens’ vulnerable prestige to the Covid-19 virus and where they are. They are located.
“Covid-19 disproportionately affects other older people and those with underlying physical conditions, and the population at risk includes those exposed to increased physical fitness and social vulnerability,” Stats SA said.
These vulnerabilities are provided in all knowledge and come with those that:
“The index aims to identify those multi-risk populations to identify the spaces where the population is most vulnerable to Covid-19,” StatsSA said.
Using those measures, Stats SA compiled a “vulnerability index score,” which is calculated as the number of other vulnerable people in a region multiplied by intensity (the number of vulnerabilities they share).
The final score is expressed on a scale of 0 to five, with five being the maximum vulnerable and 0 the minimum.
Stats SA stated that the use of knowledge from the 2011 census maps the index to the smallest domain imaginable, i. e. an enumeration domain (EA), which is the smallest geographical domain into which the country is divided for census purposes and comprises between one hundred and 250 households.
Nine provincial boards have been developed and the index is searchable at the post and municipality call level.
“The Vindex can serve as a tool to help make plans a targeted reaction as it highlights spaces vulnerable to Covid as explained through range and peak prevalence indicators. The Vindex can also serve as an evidence-based pandemic control plan tool to provide the maximum achievable location-based response,” he said.
Read: Doctor warns of more hospitals ahead of Ramaphosa’s Covid-19 address