Exchangeable Gaussian Processes with application to epidemics

Abstract

We develop a Bayesian non-parametric framework based on multi-task Gaussian processes, appropriate for temporal shrinkage. We focus on a particular class of dynamic hierarchical models to obtain evidence-based knowledge of infectious disease burden. These models induce a parsimonious way to capture cross-dependence between groups while retaining a natural interpretation based on an underlying mean process, itself expressed as a Gaussian process. We analyse distinct types of outbreak data from recent epidemics and find that the proposed models result in improved predictive ability against competing alternatives.