Experts from the Mount Sinai Health System have launched a web application designed to track the spread of coronavirus in New York City. Over the past weeks, a number of new app and tech-based solutions have launched in a bid to try and limit the spread of the virus, although few are as location-specific as this one.
The Mount Sinai Health system is a prominent New York City hospital network, formed in September of 2013 out of the merger between Continuum Health Partners and the Mount Sinai Medical Center. Mount Sinai has an employee base of 38 thousand across its eight campuses throughout NYC.
With over 100 thousand confirmed cases, New York City is currently the epicenter of the coronavirus infection in the United States. Mount Sinai hopes to expedite its understanding of COVID-19 through the STOP COVID NYC app. “We need our whole city to help,” said the project’s lead, Laura Huckins, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The press release announcing the app also explained that by “capturing citywide coronavirus data from residents before, during and after they become ill could help to reduce the pressure on medical resources and contribute to slowing the spread." However, you do not need to be experiencing symptoms to use the app. All New York City residents and Mount Sinai patients can access the STOP COVID NYC app by texting “COVID” to 64722. Any information the app collects will help health care providers track the virus as it spreads throughout New York City and its communities.
Upon starting, the app gives its users a survey to record their symptom history, demographics, and possible exposure. Every following day the app will send additional inquiries to record their symptoms, helping people make informed decisions as to whether or not they should see a medical professional, while also providing Mount Sinai with valuable information. The latter part is particularly important as with the virus having disproportionately affected New York, there's plenty of usable data available. All of which could prove invaluable to the ongoing study of coronavirus.
Mount Sinai’s methods of data collection are admirably transparent. Unlike similar tools, STOP COVID NYC doesn’t require any additional accounts, and opting in is done by texting a number as opposed to downloading it through a store. This way, Mount Sinai is both monitoring people’s exposure to the virus as well as building a medical database, all while leaving people in control of their privacy. Hopefully, this technique is adopted elsewhere in the United States as the battle to slow coronavirus continues.
Source: Mount Sinai
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