Digital Health Apps to Use During the COVID-19 Quarantine

While most of us are experiencing our very first pandemic, we are simultaneously living in an ongoing “infodemic”.

The latter refers to the widespread misinformation circulating on the web around the novel coronavirus, especially on social media. We saw the likes of reports claiming the COVID-19 being part of a biological weapons program (debunked, as the natural origins of the virus have been proven) or even more, let’s say, creative ones suggesting 5G networks cause the infection (it goes without saying that there’s no relation whatsoever).

Despite those misconceptions and hoax stories, there are a lot of helpful resources involving smartphone apps and even social media. These include software to keep track of the COVID-19 spread, apps to receive healthcare remotely and even physical phones for contact tracing. However, some of these apps might hide malicious software that can harm your device. We’ll guide you through finding trusted apps and point out to some useful resources out there that you can use during this pandemic, all accessible via your smartphone.

Beware of the harmful coronavirus… and apps…

Since we’re battling against both a pandemic and an infodemic, how can one choose trustworthy apps or online resources since they can themselves be sources of misinformation? As noted by cybersecurity solutions firm SonicWall, some are abusing from the panic caused by COVID-19. SonicWall noted that an app going by the name of Coronavirus hides a malware that allows hackers to remotely control the user’s phone.

Apple is taking such issues seriously. The tech giant is cracking down on potentially malicious software on its app store. It is reportedly only allowing apps from recognized institutions like governments, health organizations or hospitals. It might not help support independent developers, but Apple is apparently betting on playing it safe.

Apple’s direct competitor, Google, is also taking its own measures. The company’s own app store, Google Play, opened a section dedicated to COVID-19. Called “Coronavirus: Stay informed”, the page contains a curated list of apps that it certifies will help you “stay prepared and informed.”

Staying up-to-date with interactive dashboards

You now know how to find reliable apps from your smartphone; but there are also useful sites online to keep you updated on the coronavirus situation.

One of our favourites at The Medical Futurist is the online dashboard from Johns Hopkins University. By aggregating data from trusted sources, this interactive map displays detailed information about active, recovered and fatal cases across the globe.

Microsoft also has its own version as an interactive Bing map, which features the addition of related news. It draws its information from sources like the CDC and WHO. However, while it might not have the most timely updates, Bing’s map gives a general idea of the current situation.

For people in the U.K., the government launched a similar COVID-19 dashboard. It features data on reported cases, new cases and numbers of related deaths in its territories.

Another useful online source accessible from your phone is Google’s very own COVID-19 Information & Resources site. It’s a great one-stop-shop for everything COVID-19 related; you’ll find information about the disease, data about the spread, how to protect yourself, and even videos to help you cope with the lockdown.

Staying healthy indoors

Staying shut indoors can be taxing both physically and mentally. You can’t really go jogging in the park or to the gym, and seeing the same walls all day long doesn’t help much either. Thankfully, digital health can help you stay in shape.

During the pandemic, Fitbit noted a decline in average step counts worldwide of up to 38%. This means that people are less active during these trying times. To prevent people from turning into their counterparts depicted in Wall-E, the company is offering a free 90-day Premium trial with hundreds of workouts that best suit your needs. Nike is also working towards the same goal, making its Nike Training Club Premium workouts free. With free, daily livestreamed workouts on Facebook, Planet Fitness wants you to stay active, healthy, and feel great right at home.

For healthcare professionals on the frontlines in the U. S., Headspace, a mental wellbeing app, is offering its Premium service for free. “Healthcare providers are on the front lines of this public health crisis, making sure our communities receive necessary and critical care,” said Dr. Megan Jones Bell, chief science officer for Headspace. “That’s why it’s crucial for us to find ways to support their mental health and provide them with tools for managing the very real personal toll this crisis takes on them in particular”. For the general public, Headspace launched “Weathering The Storm” with free meditations, sleep, and movement exercises.

Other companies are also giving away freebies. Balance, a personalized meditation app, is offering a free one-year subscription to everyone. The digital behavioral healthcare solution Sanvello opened up its Premium offer to help reduce stress and anxiety.

Since studies show that taking some time to relax can lower both blood pressure and cardiovascular disease risk, why not try it out?

Primary care from your home

Stuck at home and don’t want to risk going to the hospital? How about bringing the hospital to you? That’s the promise of telemedicine and it saw an unprecedented demand with COVID-19.

Up until a few months ago, the concept was adopted by some countries like Rwanda and Kazakhstan, and there are other notable examples in remote regions. With the need to assess people while keeping the medical personnel and patients safe in the pandemic, remote consultation solutions picked up steam. PlushCare’s telemedicine appointments went up by 70%. Amwell, another service, had its app use increase by a whopping 158% in the U. S. since the country was affected by the virus in January.

There’s a plethora of such apps out there but Healthline made a handy curated best-of list. Some like Lemonaid offer both remote consultations and medicine delivery so that you don’t have to go out to fetch your medication.

If you’re concerned about COVID-19 symptoms, you can try this online Coronavirus Checker from Emory University’s School of Medicine. After a few screening questions, the tool will provide a summary of your risks, as well as recommendations from the CDC.

To track…

Going beyond apps, physical phones are themselves helping to fight COVID-19. Some governments resorted to unconventional means to track down potentially infected people: surveillance.

South Korea used CCTV footage, bank transactions and phone usage to track who might potentially be at risk. Using data from these sources, South Korean health authorities can pinpoint who was in close contact with an infected person or a hotspot for the disease and identify who to test. Further West, Israel’s Prime Minister allowed the country’s internal security agency to use phone location data to fight COVID-19. Those who might have been in contact could be alerted via text to quarantine themselves.

In Singapore, the government set up the TraceTogether app. Residents can download and consent to use it so as to facilitate contact tracing. The app records one’s location via Bluetooth and wireless signals and detects other users in proximity. The Ministry of Health will then contact those who might have been exposed to the disease. The app’s record can further build a network of those potentially affected.

What might sound like a politically-correct Orwellian novel is now turning into reality and this option is being considered by many. CoEpi, an open source project, launched recently to develop an app similar to TraceTogether. Researchers at MIT are working on a similar project, allowing users to log their movements and compare with others infected with COVID-19.

… Or not to track?

However, there are concerns about the effectiveness of this method as well. A study published last year showed that determining positioning via smartphone is possible with an accuracy between 7 and 13 meters. However, considering that COVID-19 spreads between people within a few feet from each other, a more accurate method would be more reliable.

In South Korea, “safety guidance texts” sent by authorities contained private information of people which others could access. This led to the exposure of embarrassing private information and rumor-mongering. China employed similar methods, but private data were not totally anonymized and other information might be collected by authorities.

Concerns over privacy and the need for such a method are warranted. It will pose a challenge to get people to tolerate such surveillance or even to reliably report on their infectious status, and might even have a cultural factor to it. Serious times call for serious measures; these current measures might serve as a test of the public’s trust in authorities.