By Joel Paige
With the rise of the covid-19 pandemic worldwide, different governments automatically imposed new restrictions and measures to help curb its spread. Technology has come through to help with the restriction concerning the safety measures observed and enhance making public health decisions in real-time. But how does technology come in? To outsmart the spread of coronavirus, Covid tracking software was developed to trace people in contact with the infected. Its main objective is to considerably aid in the collection of contact tracing data and its analysis.
The digital packages in the tracking software.
- The contact registration
It incorporates a tracker data model. It enhances confirmation of positive cases of the virus and detection of virus spread, by looking into the people who came in contact with the infected persons. It is also known as the follow-up program.
- Case-based surveillance
The tracker data model helps to:
- Study the symptoms.
- Follow-up on suspected cases.
- Do a statistic on the risk exposures.
- Develop lab requests.
- Oversee patients’ results.
- Ports of entry screening
It registers people from high-risk areas at the port of entry and oversees them for 14 days to make sure they aren’t infected.
Features of good tracking software.
For this software to be efficient in tracking those infected with Covid-19 it should have;
- Ability to work with other systems
Although it has its data collection tools and a web-based screener, it should coordinate with other systems in the health sector.
- Ability to perform at scale
It should handle a wide range of data points of up to millions while tracking complex contacts from local to national levels.
- A web-based data entry
It should contain a simple web link for the entry of contact tracing data. It will make the collection of data from health care easy.
- A well-established data system
It should be a platform that is well known and at least has a foundation or history to have been used before and during a pandemic or in disaster recovery.
- Made specifically for this use
It should contain a platform that can tackle data on relationships between persons and regions in real-time.
The Disadvantages of the Tracking Software.
Although used to reduce the spread of covid-19, it has the following downsides;
- This approach will be successful only when people download the app and install it. For the population percentage without Smartphone it’s useless.
- The app does not work well with older versions of phones like android. Low-income and older people will not be safe.
- It allows third parties and governments to access peoples’ data. It tampers with privacy.
Conclusion.
The Covid tracking software has improved the quality of data in contact tracing. It has also enabled quick decision-making by the health departments and governments by providing insights in real-time. However, the downsides that come with it must be minimized, for example, the privacy issue to avoid it being a big issue troubling the public. A web-based data entry, well-established data system, and compatibility are features of good tracking software.
