The World Health Organisation (WHO) plans to launch an app this month to enable people in under-resourced countries to assess whether they may have the novel coronavirus, and is considering a Bluetooth-based contact tracing feature too, an official told Reuters on Friday.
The app will ask people about their symptoms and offer guidance on whether they may have COVID-19, the potentially lethal illness caused by the coronavirus, said Bernardo Mariano, chief information officer for the WHO. Other information, such as how to get tested, will be personalised according to the user’s country.
Though the WHO will release a version on app stores globally, any government will be able to take the app’s underlying technology, add features and release its own version on app stores, Mariano said in a phone interview. The WHO plans to release guidance likely this week on issues countries should consider as they weigh their own proximity tracing apps.
The WHO expects its app to draw interest in other countries, including some in South America and Africa where case numbers are rising. They may lack the technology and engineers to develop apps or be struggling to offer testing and education.
“The value is really for countries that do not have anything,” Mariano said. “We would be leaving behind the ones that are not able to (provide an app), that have fragile health systems.”
The team also is considering what the WHO refers to as proximity tracing.
To reach people with limited internet access, the WHO is working to deliver information via text messages. In March, it launched an account on Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp to provide users with information about the coronavirus, and it partnered with the company’s Free Basics program to make some information available without users incurring data charges.
The WHO also plans to release an app next week to inform health workers globally about best practices for donning protective gear, washing hands and treating the virus. The organisation already has a general app, WHO Info, that largely mirrors its website. Mariano said he wants to include additional tools beyond the symptom checker, including a self-help guide for mental health care.