An overview of mobile applications (apps) to support the coronavirus disease 2019 response in India

Abstract

Background & objectives: The potential benefits of mobile health (mHealth) initiatives to manage the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have been explored. The Government of India, State governments, and healthcare organizations have developed various mobile apps for the containment of COVID-19. This study was aimed to systematically review COVID-19 related mobile apps and highlight gaps to inform the development of future mHealth initiatives. Methods: Google Play and the Apple app stores were searched using the terms 'COVID-19', 'coronavirus', 'pandemic', and 'epidemic' in the first week of April 2020. A list of COVID-19-specific functions was compiled based on the review of the selected apps, the literature on epidemic surveillance, and national and international media reports. The World Health Organization guideline on Digital Health Interventions was used to classify the app functions under the categories of the general public, health workers, health system managers, and data services. Results: The search yielded 346 potential COVID-19 apps, of which 50 met the inclusion criteria. Dissemination of untargeted COVID-19-related information on preventative strategies and monitoring the movements of quarantined individuals was the function of 27 (54%) and 19 (32%) apps, respectively. Eight (16%) apps had a contact tracing and hotspot identification function. Interpretation & conclusions: Our study highlights the current emphasis on the development of self-testing, quarantine monitoring, and contact tracing apps. India's response to COVID-19 can be strengthened by developing comprehensive mHealth solutions for frontline healthcare workers, rapid response teams and public health authorities. Among this unprecedented global health emergency, the Governments must ensure the necessary but least intrusive measures for disease surveillance. Bassi Abhinav 1 The George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi Arfin Sumaiya 2 The George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi John Oommen 3 The George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi Jha Vivekanand 4 The George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Situation report-78. Geneva: WHO; 2020. World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Situation Report-106. Geneva: WHO; 2020. Zarocostas J. How to fight an infodemic. Lancet 2020; 395 : 676. Wood CS, Thomas MR, Budd J, Mashamba-Thompson TP, Herbst K, Pillay D, et al. Taking connected mobile-health diagnostics of infectious diseases to the field. Nature 2019; 566 : 467-74. World Health Organization. Digital technology for COVID-19 response. Geneva: WHO; 2020. Reeves JJ, Hollandsworth HM, Torriani FJ, Taplitz R, Abeles S, Tai-Seale M, et al. Rapid response to COVID-19: Health informatics support for outbreak management in an academic health system. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2020. pii: ocaa037. Danquah LO, Hasham N, MacFarlane M, Conteh FE, Momoh F, Tedesco AA, et al. Use of a mobile application for Ebola contact tracing and monitoring in Northern Sierra Leone: A proof-of-concept study. BMC Infect Dis 2019; 19. doi:10.1186/s12879-019-4354-z. Ahmadi S, Bempong NE, De Santis O, Sheath D, Flahault A. The role of digital technologies in tackling the Zika outbreak: A scoping review. J Public Health Emerg 2018; 2 : 1-20. Schwind JS, Wolking DJ, Brownstein JS, Mazet JA, Smith WA, Smith WA. Evaluation of local media surveillance for improved disease recognition and monitoring in global hotspot regions. PLoS One 2014; 9 : e110236. Zhou X, Snoswell CL, Harding LE, Bambling M, Edirippulige S, Bai X, et al. The role of telehealth in reducing the mental health burden from COVID-19. Telemed e Health 2020; 26 : 377-9. Smith AC, Thomas E, Snoswell CL, Haydon H, Mehrotra A, Clemensen J, et al. Telehealth for global emergencies: Implications for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). J Telemed Telecare 2020. pii: 1357633X20916567. Dujmovic J. Wildly popular coronavirus-tracker app helps South Koreans steer clear of outbreak areas. MarketWatch; 2020. Available from: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/wildly-popular-coronavirus-tracker-app-helps-south-koreans-steer-clear-of-outbreak-areas-2020-03-18">https://www.marketwatch.com/story/wildly-popular-coronavirus-tracker-app-helps-south-koreans-steer-clear-of-outbreak-areas-2020-03-18, accessed on April 11, 2020. Wakefield J. Coronavirus: Tracking app aims for one million downloads. Available from: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52033210">https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52033210, accessed on April 8, 2020. Holmes A. Singapore is using a high-tech surveillance app to track the coronavirus, keeping schools and businesses open. Here's how it works. Business Insider India; 2020. Available from: https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/singapore-is-using-a-high-tech-surveillance-app-to-track-the-coronavirus-keeping-schools-and-businesses-open-heres-how-it-works-/articleshow/74797714.cms">https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/singapore-is-using-a-high-tech-surveillance-app-to-track-the-coronavirus-keeping-schools-and-businesses-open-heres-how-it-works-/articleshow/74797714.cms, accessed on April 11, 2020. Ananth V. Beyond contact-tracing, Aarogya Setu may find use in policy inputs. The Economic Times; 2020. Available from: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/beyond-contact-tracing-aarogya-setu-may-find-use-in-policy-inputs/articleshow/75078678.cms">https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/beyond-contact-tracing-aarogya-setu-may-find-use-in-policy-inputs/articleshow/75078678.cms, accessed on April 11, 2020. Maharashtra govt launches online self-assessment tool to better identify, assist Covid-19 patients. India Today; 2020. Available from: https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/maharashtra-govt-launches-online-self-assessment-tool-to-better-identify-assist-covid-19-patients-1662766-2020-04-03">https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/maharashtra-govt-launches-online-self-assessment-tool-to-better-identify-assist-covid-19-patients-1662766-2020-04-03, accessed on April 11, 2020. 17. World Health Organization. WHO guideline: Recommendations on digital interventions for health system strengthening. Geneva: WHO; 2019. Mohanty B, Chughtai A, Rabhi F. Use of Mobile Apps for epidemic surveillance and response-A vailability and gaps. Glob Biosecurity 2019; 1 : 37. Available from: https://jglobalbiosecurity.com/article/10.31646/gbio.39/">https://jglobalbiosecurity.com/article/10.31646/gbio.39/, accessed on April 8, 2020. Greenhalgh T, Koh GCH, Car J. Covid-19: A remote assessment in primary care. BMJ 2020; 368 : m1182. Roundup: Tech's role in tracking, testing, treating COVID-19. Available from: https://www.mobihealthnews.com/news/roundup-techs-role-tracking-testing-treating-covid-19">https://www.mobihealthnews.com/news/roundup-techs-role-tracking-testing-treating-covid-19, accessed on April 8, 2020. Linder C. This MIT App Tracks the Spread of Coronavirus While Protecting Your Privacy. Popular Mechanics; 2020. Available from: https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/apps/a31742763/covid-19-app-private-kit-safe-paths/">https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/apps/a31742763/covid-19-app-private-kit-safe-paths/, accessed on April 8, 2020. Ananth V. Government requests social media platforms to promote Aarogya Setu. 2020. Available from: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/software/government-requests-social-media-platforms-to-promote-aarogya-setu/articleshow/75080073.cms">https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/software/government-requests-social-media-platforms-to-promote-aarogya-setu/articleshow/75080073.cms, accessed on April 12, 2020. Safra EJ. Outpacing the Virus: Digital Response to Containing the Spread of COVID-19 while Mitigating Privacy Risk; 2020. Available from: https://ethics.harvard.edu/files/center-for-ethics/files/white_paper_5_outpacing_the_virus_final.pdf">https://ethics.harvard.edu/files/center-for-ethics/files/white_paper_5_outpacing_the_virus_final.pdf, accessed on May 3, 2020. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Goverment of India. Telemedicine practice guideline: Enabling registered medical practitioners to provide healthcare using telemedicine. Available from: https://www.mohfw.gov.in/pdf/Telemedicine.pdf">https://www.mohfw.gov.in/pdf/Telemedicine.pdf, accessed on April 12, 2020. Chan H. Pervasive personal data collection at the heart of South Korea's COVID-19 success may not translate. Available from: https://blogs.thomsonreuters.com/answerson/south-korea-covid-19-data-privacy/">https://blogs.thomsonreuters.com/answerson/south-korea-covid-19-data-privacy/, accessed on April 13, 2020. Salako T, Huet N. Coronavirus conundrum: COVID-19 tracking apps that don't breach privacy. Available from: https://www.euronews.com/2020/04/10/coronavirus-conundrum-covid-19-tracking-apps-that-don-t-breach-privacy">https://www.euronews.com/2020/04/10/coronavirus-conundrum-covid-19-tracking-apps-that-don-t-breach-privacy, accessed on April 13, 2020. Sharwood S. Singapore to open-source national Coronavirus encounter-tracing app and the Bluetooth research behind it. 2020. Available from: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/26/singapore_tracetogether_coronavirus_encounter_tracing_app_lessons/">https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/26/singapore_tracetogether_coronavirus_encounter_tracing_app_lessons/, accessed on April 13, 2020.