Coronavirus – The HSE Covid 19 Tracker App in Ireland

Today in a significant development in the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic, the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive launched a Covid 19 tracing mobile application. The app aims to help identify and alert close contacts of people who test positive for the disease. This will supplement existing contact tracing methods being used. The app will also provide users with relevant information about Coronavirus in Ireland.

Scientists also recommend the use of Vitamin D supplement during the Coronavirus pandemic.

What is the Covid Tracker Ireland App?

At the launch, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly, explained that the mobile phone app will help improve contact tracing and tracking symptoms among users. It will also provide users with access to relevant up-to-date information about the Coronavirus in Ireland.

The app anonymously tracks the user’s location and its interactions with other devices that have the app downloaded. It uses Bluetooth technology to track which devices have been a close contact of a device of a person who has tested positive.

If you have close contact with a positive Covid 19 case, it will alert you to this fact. That is providing that the person who tested positive also has the mobile app downloaded.

To be effective, it is therefore vital that the majority of the population of Ireland download the mobile application. Already over a million people in Ireland have downloaded the mobile app.

Benefits of Coronavirus Tracing App

The key benefits of the HSE Covid 19 Tracing App are:

• It is free to download.
• It is user-friendly.
• You will receive an alert if you have been in close contact with a person who has tested positive for coronavirus providing, they also have the app.
• If you test positive for Covid 19, it will alert other app users that you were in close contact with. You must have notifications turned on for the app.
• The app allows you to track your own symptoms over time, and communicate this with the HSE.
• You can add your telephone number to the app. If so, the HSE will call you to arrange a test if you are a close contact.
• It provides statistics about the pandemic in the country, along with a breakdown by county.
• It offers information and advice on protecting yourself and others from the disease.

Downloading the Covid Tracker App

The app is available on Android or iOS devices. It can be downloaded for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

What is a Close Contact?

The HSE define a close contact as a person spending more than 15 minutes of face-to-face contact within 2 metres of an infected person, or sharing accommodation with an infected person.

Coronavirus Tracker Personal Data and Privacy

When a user downloads the app, it will request permission to collect and share anonymous data in order to facilitate contact tracing. Users also have the option to share their phone number.

Regarding concerns around privacy, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said “the app has been developed with privacy by design at its core” and “privacy is built into the app at every point in the process”.

According to the Data Protection Act 2018, the digital age of consent in Ireland is 16. Therefore, only people over 16 years old are permitted to use the app.

Coronavirus in Ireland

At the time of writing, the app stated there are 27,313 confirmed cased in the Republic of Ireland. There were 1,774 deaths with 3,387 people hospitalised and 442 requiring ICU.

Scientists Recommend Vitamin D Supplement

In our recent blog post, we discussed the importance of vitamin D in helping fight Covid 19. Scientists at Trinity College Dublin have recommended that the Government should urge all adults as a matter of urgency to supplement their diet with Vitamin D during the Coronavirus pandemic.

This is due to Vitamin D playing a pivotal role in fighting viral infections, and supporting the immune system through a number of immune pathways involved in fighting Covid 19.