The University of Arizona campus.
Researchers at the University of Arizona have launched a text message survey to collect information about the COVID-19 outbreak directly from households.
The survey will help fill critical gaps in data about the virus, said Kacey Ernst, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the UA.
"There's just not enough testing that's being done, so there's a ton of people who are sick with COVID-19 and we just don't even know it," she said.
Participants will be asked in the weekly survey about health and wellness conditions for everyone in their household. But the survey will go beyond identifying those who may be sick. It will also collect information about the challenges people are facing from lockdowns, including access to food or how they are coping emotionally.
"We're going to ask multiple questions trying to get a picture of what's going on in our community at the ZIP code level that may not be detected by our routine surveillance systems," said Ernst. "And what kind of support are people needing in our community."
If participants report an issue, for example with mental health or food insecurity, they'll receive tailored text messages providing information or resources to help.
Ernst said they're recruiting as many participants as possible, and anyone in Arizona and particularly Pima County is invited to take part.
To take part, text “JOIN” for the English-language survey or "UNIRSE" for the Spanish-language version to 1-833-410-0546.
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