In the context of the fight against corona, there are now various healthcare apps on the market. The government also wants to use such a care app. What does such an app do and how safe is it?
The Dutch government has already said that every app that is used must comply with privacy legislation. Your personal data may therefore not be shared with others: you must remain anonymous. In addition, the European Commission is working on guidelines that apps must comply with in the fight against corona. These European directives also focus on the privacy of citizens.
OLVG: self-scan app
Together with an app builder, the OLVG hospital in Amsterdam has developed a self-scan app. This app has been online since mid-March and about 90,000 people have now downloaded it. The OLVG app helps you record your health. In the app, the user fills in information about body temperature, cold symptoms and shortness of breath on a daily basis. If the symptoms resemble a corona infection, a doctor will contact you within 24 hours. Over the past few weeks, 46,000 people have been called back due to complaints via this app. Of this group, 59 people had to go to the emergency room, 129 to a general practitioner and 23 to a general practitioner.
Target Self-Scan App
A self-scan app gives the government a better picture of the development of the virus. This requires that as many people as possible download the app. The app also offers benefits for healthcare. By gaining insight into the course of the complaints, the doctor can reassure or redirect the patient remotely. In this way, the self-scan app can play an important role in reducing the pressure in healthcare.
Participate in self-scanning app OLVG
The OLVG self-scan app was initially only available to residents of Amsterdam and the surrounding area. Many regions have since been added, including Rotterdam Rijnmond, Drenthe, Nijmegen, Utrecht and the eastern Netherlands. On the website of app builder Luscii you will find the current overview of all participating regions. Good to know: if you are referred on the basis of your complaints, you do not need to go to the OLVG in Amsterdam. In every region where the app can be used, there is a collaboration with healthcare in that region.
LUMC: radar app
The Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) also launched an app at the beginning of April. This app mainly focuses on the regional distribution of complaints and people’s behaviour. Users regularly – preferably daily – enter data about their health and their own behaviour. With this information, the LUMC researchers hope to gain insight into the regional spread of corona and the importance of keeping a distance. The researchers also expect to be able to better predict where and when the demand for care will increase. If you would like to participate in this research, you can download the app from the LUMC website.
Beware of fraudulent corona apps
Of course we would like to stop coronavirus as soon as possible, but we must continue to use common sense. A few tips to prevent abuse via rogue apps:
- Only download apps from the Appstore (Apple) or Google Play (Android). This reduces the risk of becoming a victim of a fraudulent app.
- Is the app asking for access to your camera, microphone, or photos? Then ask yourself what a corona app would want with that – probably not a good thing. So refuse that access!
- ‘With this app you can see how corona is developing in your street’… but is that realistic? So no. There is a good chance that you are dealing with a rogue app here.
- In the article ‘Handling apps safely’ from Seniorweb you will find good tips for using apps on Apple and Android devices.
- And finally, never click on links you don’t trust: check first, then click
