WHO to launch mobile app for safety tips and updates on COVID-19 pandemic

World Health Organisation is planning to launch an app that would help smartphone users stay informed and up to date about the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to reports, the app will not only give users useful tips to safeguard themselves against the outbreak but also provide them with detailed statistics of cases around the world. This comes as the COVID-19 pandemic has killed 26, 950 and infected over 5,90,424 people across the globe with a majority of them in the United States. 

According to reports, the app which is being developed for Android, iOS and web platforms will provide alerts, news, tips and other information that will keep users updated about the ongoing coronavirus crisis. Additionally, it could also come with “self-triage” tools to help users diagnose if their symptoms match those of COVID-19 infection. 

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MyHealthApp

The app will source content from WHO’s WhatsApp chatbot and will be available in the organisation’s six official languages; Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. In addition to that, the app will feature push notification features as well.

The app, which is likely to be called MyHealth app, would be launched on March 30, international media reported. It was originally proposed by a team of volunteer experts, as per reports.

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Israel to launch app to detect infection

This comes just two days after the Israeli Defence Ministry announced that a start-up is working with health professionals and researchers to develop a mobile application to detect COVID-19 symptoms. The ministry along with the Department of Defence Research & Development (DDR&D) is leading the development of an Artificial Intelligence-based app which will test the voice to detect the symptoms of the novel coronavirus.

The defence ministry, in a statement, said that the DDR&D and Vocalis Health will use a mobile app to collect the voice samples of coronavirus infected patients. The “voice fingerprints” will be analysed to form a basis for the app to diagnose and monitor patients. Since COVID-19 affects the respiratory system and causes breathing issues, the signs could be well reflected in the voice and breathing pattern.

Currently, the app will only be used by medical staff on the patients taking part in the study. However, the company's website allows anyone to send voice samples to researchers. Israel has reported over 1,900 confirmed cases of coronavirus and three deaths due to infection.

(Image Credits: AP)

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