What is contact tracing and how it can help you stay safe during Covid-19 pandemic

The catastrophic outbreak of the novel coronavirus which originated in the Wuhan district of China and quickly became a pandemic has impacted the world in an unimaginable manner.  The pandemic has resulted in billions of dollars’ worth of loss to the global economy and has upended livelihoods. In a bid to contain the outbreak from inflicting further destruction, several governments across the globe have placed their countries under a total or partial lockdown with the exception of essential services.

Despite such stringent regulations, cases of COVID-19 continue to be on the rise, crossing the 3.5 million mark worldwide. One of the major reasons is insufficient testing and tracking those individuals who may have come into close contact with an infected person. Another key tool in the multipronged approach to containing the outbreak is contact tracing. Let us take a look at what contact tracing is and how it will help us against COVID-19.

Understanding contact tracing

Contact tracing is an upfront concept. It involves keeping a track of all the people who have come into close contact (spending more than 15 mins with an infected person or coming into contact with them within a distance of 3 feet) with a person infected with COVID-19. Attempting to determine every single person who came in contact with the infected person and monitoring their health for a specific period of time is contact tracing. This method will allow healthcare authorities to keep track of the potentially infected and enforce adequate measures such as isolation, quarantine or administering the right medication.

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The role of contact tracing to combat COVID-19

The advent of technology has made it possible for us to perform some of the most complex tasks with the click of a button. Contact tracing is a technology-based concept which only requires a person to carry a smartphone and keep the Bluetooth feature on at all times. While there are various versions of mobile applications for contact tracing by both government and private organizations, the overall working model remains the same. 

Once the smartphone user has switched on the Bluetooth on their mobile device, the phone will identify a certain ‘key’ when the individual meets another person. In case the individual tests positive for the virus in a few days, they need to enter this into the app, post which the app asks them to upload the previous 14 days of the Bluetooth ‘keys’. In the meantime, the phone will automatically download the ‘keys’ of all other individuals that the infected person met within those 14 days and has tested positive.

Contact tracing has been a crucial way of identifying and containing the virus. For example, in countries such as Singapore and South Korea, contact tracing apps were made mandatory and the measures were strictly followed. This turned out to be a success since these countries stated reporting a lesser number of cases in a considerably short period of time. The Indian government too has made it compulsory for all private and public sector employees to install the contact tracing app Arogya Setu. Although the nationwide lockdown has been extended till the 17th of May, the app will make it easier to keep a record of the citizens’ health and avoid any further downfall to livelihood by enabling healthcare workers to take swift and effective action.

With both government and private organization joining hands and proactively taking measures, the world would be able to sidestep any further downfall until the time a vaccination is available to the public.

(By Ankit Chaudhari, Co-founder, Aiisma)