A COVID-19 contact tracing app is being trialed by 100 soldiers at the Chamblon army base near Lausanne, Switzerland. The Bluetooth-enabled app logs if users have spent more than 15 minutes within two metres of another user. Then, when one uploads a positive test result for COVID-19, the system and alerts users to the contact. In order to test its efficacy, the volunteers must also exchange a validation card.
In order to protect user-privacy, the results are stored on individual Bluetooth devices rather than a central server. The developers hope this will encourage more people to use the app, which in turn will improve results.The app is set for general release 11 May.
Wi-Fi AT NIGHTINGALE
Insmartcities have set up free Wi-Fi in the temporary Nightingale North-East hospital in Sunderland, UK. Separate to the NHS system, the additional super-fast Wi-Fi is so that COVID-19 patients can maintain contact with their loved ones, keeping morale high and curbing some of the psychological impact of isolation whilst obeying lockdown restrictions. The system was installed in less than two days by engineers who remained socially distanced throughout.
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UK CARE HOMES GIVEN VIRTUAL GP
Care homes across the UK are installing remote diagnosis hubs to support patient care during the pandemic without necessitating a doctor’s visit. The contact-free assessment tool, developed by digital health solutions company Medicspot, enables GPs to provide video consultations whilst using connected devices to take real-time vitals with the assistance of carers. The self-service stations can assess the patients temperature, oxygen levels and heart and lung systems, reducing strain on GP services.
NEW UK REMOTE DIAGNOSIS APP
SDG Group have launched Docdot, a new AI-enabled smartphone app to diagnose, triage and monitor COVID-19 patients remotely. After filling out some short questions, the app uses AI technologies and remote photoplethysmography (rPPG), a light signal processing technology developed by binah.ai, to reads a users vital signs through their smartphone camera. The app is able to record heart rate, HRV, oxygen saturation and respiration, which are all crucial indicators of COVID-19 infection. By enabling these to be tested remotely, the app could limit the spread of the virus.
The data retrieved by the app is also geo-referenced and uploaded to the cloud to enable statistical-epidemiological modelling and contagion forecasting.
SWEDISH DIABETES TECH FOR COVID-19
Innovosens AB’s wearable device to measure vitals for diabetics could be used to identify and monitor COVID-19 patients. SMASH – Sweat Metabolite Analysis for Sports and Skin – measures the blood sugar and lactate levels of the user without piercing the skin. Increased lactate levels are also found in patients suffering from lung infections, a side-effect of severe COVID-19 infection. Innovosens is seeking additional funding to adapt and expand their product and to link it to a monitoring app. The company are also offering free prototypes to hospital and care home staff to help protect those most at-risk.
Source: Mobihealth News
