IQuery Frequently Asked Questions

Search the frequently asked questions (FAQ) categories below to find answers to your questions about IQuery.

Your concerns, comments, and suggestions are vital for the maintenance and improvement of the system. Submit your feedback for any problem you encounter and let us know if you'd like a personal response.

This page will be updated with questions and answers as necessary. You can also browse the list of Frequently Asked Questions and submit a new question yourself through email at DPH.IQuery@illinois.gov.

IQuery is Illinois Query, a web-based data query system for collecting and disseminating public health data. IQuery is administered by the Illinois Department of Public Health to assist local health departments in their IPLAN processes.

IPLAN (Illinois Project for Local Assessment of Needs) refers to Illinois' official certification process for local health departments and the web data system, IQuery, that provides health information to that certification process https://app.idph.state.il.us/.

The expected users are local health department staff.

Currently, logging in to the IQuery dashboard requires access to an Illinois.gov account. To request access, contact DPH.IQuery@Illinois.gov. Include your name, phone number, email address, and local health department. The login version of IQuery does not have any data suppression. We are working to create a publicly available version.

No. Only aggregated data compiled from individual cases, deaths, or events is available.

Send an email to DPH.IQuery@illinois.gov.

IQuery contains data sets from the Illinois Department of Public Health (vital statistics, sexually transmitted diseases, childhood lead exposure) and census information for Illinois. Additionally, it provides links to other related data sources.

Individual data managers provide datasets. Based on the timeliness of when the data is presented to them and when they can load the data into IQuery will determine how quickly it is available. As you select a Health Indicator in IQuery, the years for which data has been reported will be available for your selection.

Public health data are collected, tested, analyzed, and released following a complex process designed to ensure accuracy, clarity, and internal consistency. Data are released only after required approvals have been obtained.

Individual data managers provide datasets for a specific period. The timeliness of when the data is presented to them and when they can load it into IQuery will determine how quickly it is available.

You may send an email to DPH.IQuery@illinois.gov.

The different tabs are explained in the chart below.

Yes. IQuery has in-system help for using the data search page.

• The “Custom Chart” has detailed numbered instructions for selecting different kinds of variables for your data.
• Hover-text definitions and descriptions are available by clicking on the “i” symbols for more details about the primary or secondary data type.
• Hover over bars to see the tooltip.

A primary or secondary data type refers to the type of data available for visualization. This could be counts, crude rates, or percentages. The type of data is always displayed as the axis label to the left of the chart. Click on the “i” to the left of “data type” selection to see more details about primary and secondary data.

A rate is a measure of an event, disease, birth, death, or condition in a population. Crude rates are calculated by dividing the number of events, deaths, or cases by the specified population. The rate is compared to the total population and expressed per 100,000 people.

IQuery automatically calculates rates if the necessary data is present. Crude rates are possible if the number of cases and events is known relative to the population, but the cases must be known for a given population. For example, IQuery may include the number (count) of "deaths caused by diabetes" for the city of Douglas, but without knowing the population of Douglas, the crude rate cannot be calculated.

Counts are the actual number of events, cases, or deaths in a specific population.

Percentages are calculated by dividing the number of events, births, deaths, or cases by the specified population and multiplying it by 100.

IQuery has intelligent processing built in so that only time periods for which data is available for the selected “Health Indicator” and “Geographic Area” will appear. If a particular year does not appear, it means that no reported cases exist during that year, or the data is not currently available.

IQuery has intelligent processing built in so that only demographics for which data is available for the selected health indicator, area, and year will appear. If a particular race, ethnicity, sex, or age group does not show as a selection, it means that data for that demographic does not exist or is unavailable.

Like any application running on the web, many factors influence its responsiveness. However, no processing takes place on your computer. If a query or report takes more than 10-30 seconds to run, try reloading your page.

The data in the IQuery dashboard is displayed by IPLAN community health categories and is available by years and geographies. There are seven community health categories with examples below.

Below are examples of community health indicators based on IPLAN categories. Some of the listed indicators can be found in the IQuery dashboard (noted with an asterisk), and others can be obtained from the linked folder of Related Data sources.

Examples

• Population by Age and Gender*
• Dependency Indicators
• Race/Ethnicity Distribution*
• Median Age for Population
• Population 25+ Who Are Non-High School Graduates*
• High School Dropouts
• Population in Poverty
• Population Receiving Food Stamps*
• Rural Population
• Unemployed*
• Population Enrolled in Medicaid*
• Single Parent Household
• Per Capita Personal Income*

Examples

• Mortality Rates*
• Leading Causes of Mortality*
• Life Expectancy at Birth*
• Excess Non-White Deaths
• Population Uninsured*
• Years of Potential Life Lost*
• Percent Population No Medical Physical in Past 2 Years
• Medicaid Enrollees to Medicaid Physician Vendors Ratio
• Advanced Life Support Emergency Care Vehicles
• Population Residing in Primary Care HPSA
• Population with Optimally Fluoridated Water

Examples

• Live Births*
• Infant Mortality Rate
• Low Birth Weight*
• Mothers Who Smoke During Pregnancy*
• Mothers Who Drink During Pregnancy*
• Kessner Index of Prenatal Care
• Mothers Begin Prenatal in 1st Trimester*
• Infants Positive for Cocaine
• Leading Causes of Mortality (Ages 1-4)
• WIC: Low Weight for Height
• Teen Birth Rate
• Percent Births to Teens*
• Founded Child Abuse/Neglect Rate
• Congenital Anomalies
• Medicaid Deliveries
• IDPA-Eligible Children Receiving EPSDT
• Kotelchuck Index of Prenatal Care Utilization*
• Method of Delivery*

Examples

• Coronary Heart Disease Mortality Rates*
• Cerebrovascular Diseases Mortality Rates*
• Chronic Liver Disease and Cirrhosis Mortality Rates*
• Breast Cancer (female) Mortality Rates
• Lung Cancer Mortality Rates
• Colorectal Cancer Mortality Rates
• Cervical Cancer (female) Mortality Rates
• Prostate Cancer (male) Mortality Rates
• Childhood Cancer (under age 15) Mortality Rates
• Alcohol Dependence Syndrome Hospitalization Rates
• Total Psychoses Hospitalization Rates
• Diabetes Hospitalization Rates
• Overweight, Smokers, Sedentary Lifestyles
• Breast Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate
• Colorectal Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate
• Cervical Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate
• Lung Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate
• Prostate Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate
• Percent Diagnosed in situ Breast Cancer (female)
• Percent Diagnosed at Local Stage Colorectal Cancer
• Percent Diagnosed at Local Stage Prostate Cancer
• Percent Diagnosed at Late-Stage Cervical Cancer
• Childhood Cancer Age-adjusted Incidence Rate

Examples

• COVID-19 Incidence Rates
• Syphilis Incidence Rates*
• Gonorrhea Incidence Rates*
• Chlamydia Incidence Rates*
• HIV Infection Incidence Rates
• Basic Series Vaccinations
• Haemophilus Meningitis (Ages 0-2 and 0-4)
• Foodborne Pathogens Infection Rates
• Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
• Hepatitis B Incidence Rates
• Tuberculosis Incidence Rates

Examples

• Toxic Agents Released into Air, Water, Soil
• Accident Mortality Rates*
• Homicide Rates*
• Suicide Rates*
• Non-Fatal Head/Spinal Cord, Hip Injury Hospitalization Rates
• Non-Fatal Hip Fracture Hospitalization Rates (Ages 65 and Up)
• Non-Fatal Head Injury Hospitalization Rates
• Non-Fatal Spinal Cord Injury Hospitalization Rates
• Alcohol-Related Motor Vehicle Mortality Rates
• Occupational Diseases/Injuries
• Blood Lead Levels in Children*
• Assault Rates

Examples

• Deaths from COVID-19*
• Hospitalization for Dehydration (Infants, ages 0-1)
• Hospitalization for Rheumatic Fever (Children, ages 1-17)
• Hospitalization for Asthma (Children, ages 1-14)
• Number of Cases of Measles, Mumps, Polio, and Tetanus (ages 1-17)
• Number of Cases of Tuberculosis (Adults, 18 and older)
• Hospitalization for Uncontrolled Hypertension in Adults
• Females with Late Cervical Cancer and In Situ Breast Cancer (5-year average age-adjusted rate and 5-year number)

IQuery presents data collected and released by different state agencies. The data collected, stored, and displayed varies widely because of different laws and mandates for data collection, different collection methodologies, and different anticipated uses. Data descriptions are provided by the offices and managers responsible for that data. Contact those data managers for more information about the data itself.

IQuery is designed to return results with as much detail as possible. For example, if "death by accident" is available for all counties in Illinois, then IQuery will present that. If other data is only available by a total for the whole state, then that is all that can be presented.

Secondly, the IQuery custom chart is designed to reflect your choices as you move through the data query. Extending the example above, if you select a health indicator only available at the county level, you will only get counties displayed. Furthermore, only counties with relevant data for your search will be displayed in the chart.

Yes, each health indicator is fully explained in the linked section of the IQuery webpage titled Indicator Metadata.

Data requests can be made through the contact information provided in the metadata description.

The metadata file contains details about each IQuery indicator. These details may include descriptions, dashboard location, data presentation format, available demographics, data sources, and contact information.

Yes. There is a link to other related data sources in IQuery.

The technical assistance session provided an overview of the IQuery website. IQuery is Illinois Query, a web-based data query system for collecting and disseminating public health data. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is the lead agency in implementing IQuery. A primary goal of IQuery is to support local health departments (LHDs) in their IPLAN processes by offering the most up-to-date data possible in an easy to access repository.

Note: Log in to the IQuery dashboard requires access to an Illinois.gov account. To request access, contact DPH.IQuery@Illinois.gov. Include your name, phone number, email address, and local health department.

All the data sets are available at the county level.

Chicago data is listed separately from Cook County.

SHARE stands for “Sharing Health Assessment Results Electronically.” The SHARE reports include top health priorities, objectives, and strategic intervention.

IDPH shares the top health priorities per round. A share round is the five-year period within which every LHD has submitted an IPLAN. Submission of IPLAN is staggered within a five-year period.

Examples of SHARE Rounds include:

• SHARE Round 1:1994 - 1998
• SHARE Round 2:1999 - 2003
• SHARE Round 3: 2004 - 2008
• SHARE Round 4: 2009 - 2013
• SHARE Round 5: 2014 - 2018
• SHARE Round 6: 2019 - 2023
• SHARE Round 7: 2024 - 2028

All the data is aggregate data.

Access is required because there is no data suppression currently.

As a result of no data suppression, it is not currently available to the public.

IQuery has data for LHDs smaller than county level, like East Side Health District (ESHD), Evanston, Oak Park, Skokie, and Stickney. Chicago data exists in the IQuery dashboard.

The IQuery website also has Related Data sources that includes links to common relevant data that LHDs smaller than county can use to complete their community health needs assessment report.

For example, City Health dashboards categories align with those used in the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps.

Public health data are collected, tested, analyzed, and released following a complex process designed to ensure accuracy, clarity, and internal consistency. Data are released only after required approvals have been obtained.

The data is as current as our data sources allow. Most indicators currently have data for 2022.

At this time, we are exploring options on how to include data at the ZIP code level that would still shield personal identifiers and maintain HIPAA compliance. Most likely, we would start with ZIP codes that have large population polls.

The data in the IQuery dashboard is collected from multiple sources, most currently from:

• Birth and death records from vital statistics
• Childhood lead exposure data from Healthy Housing and Lead Poisoning Surveillance System (HHLPSS)
• Other relevant data sources that can be used to complete the IPLAN are linked to IQuery as Related Data

• If in doubt or if you need any technical assistance related to the use of IQuery for a data report, send an email to DPH.IQuery@illinois.gov.
• All sections of the IQuery website, EXCEPT the IQuery dashboard, are open access.
• Log in to the IQuery dashboard requires access to an Illinois.gov account. To request access, contact DPH.IQuery@Illinois.gov. Include your name, phone number, email address, and local health department.
• IQuery is the IPLAN community health data system. It is a vital source for community health needs assessment. In the IQuery dashboard, health indicators are classified into seven categories.
• There is a section in the IQuery dashboard for LHD profiled data.

The technical assistance session provided an overview of how to access existing data from IDPH in syndromic surveillance, hospital discharge, BRFSS (Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System), vital statistics, and the cancer registry. The session also provided an update on the Healthy Illinois Survey as well as the Master Data Use Agreement.

If you have any questions related to the MDUA, send an email to DPH.LHD.DUA@illinois.gov.

Other relevant data sources that can be used to complete the IPLAN are also linked to IQuery as Related Data.

Yes. IQuery will require a login to access all the data in the dashboard. There will be a publicly available version coming out; however, we are running into challenges with data suppression that are slowing down the process. The login version of IQuery does not have any data suppression.

We believe you can reset your OKTA/IQuery password on your own through the login screen. If you need assistance, call 217-524-3648 or 312-814-3648 during regular business hours.

Yes. It is up and running. If you are having issues with your account, contact StaceyHoferka.Jensen@illinois.gov.

IDPH and the Illinois Public Health Institute (IPHI) are hoping to offer additional data TA sessions on a quarterly basis.

Below are the scheduled TA session dates for 2025:

• July 31, 2025, 1-2 p.m.
• September 25, 2025, 1-2 p.m.
• November 20, 2025, 1-2 p.m.

You can reach out to DPH.HIL@illinois.gov.

The data will be collected annually, and reports will be available annually.

Some health measures for smaller counties may take two or more years of data collection to be able to report the rate.