The COVID-19 pandemic sheds light on the heroism, bravery and importance of the work of all health professionals fighting on the front lines of the fight against the virus. It also helps us understand how essential the right technology and resources are to their daily work, both in a pandemic and for the health of the general public.
Right now, staff in hospitals and other healthcare facilities are under significant stress, and in this environment, innovative technology is helping them fight the virus and its effects.
A joint step into the future of technological innovation
One of the most interesting initiatives was the proposal of the PEPP-PT (Pan-European Privacy-Preserving Proximity Tracing) organization. The organization brings together scientists and researchers from eight countries under its umbrella; they are developing smartphone technology to track people who have come into contact with COVID-19 infected individuals.
Many other countries, including Austria, Germany, Norway and the UK, are developing social mobile tracking apps to help bring the situation with the virus under control. One German startup company has also developed a chatbot called “Corona-Bot” that asks users a series of questions based on which it infer symptoms and possible COVID-19 infection.
Also in Germany, more and more doctors are using telemedicine services and organizing remote video consultations with patients, which allows them to perform their duties without violating the rules of social distance. In terms of hospital capacity, centralized control panels are helping to organize the workflow – they ensure that beds and wards are used efficiently, taking into account the current workload and situation.
Researchers and scientists around the world are conducting their own tests and studies to understand the mechanisms of the virus and develop a vaccine, but the European Commission has also announced the launch of a data portal where tools and datasets can be accessed. This resource will be very useful to those who are working tirelessly to defeat the dangerous virus.
Each of these innovations reduces the burden on the healthcare industry in one way or another, but it is also worth considering the effectiveness of the technology used in hospitals and other healthcare facilities.