Waiting for mass vaccination against Covid-19, there is already an app that certifies who received their dose.
The certificate of vaccination against Covid-19 comes on your smartphone. This step forward is made possible by a U.S. app, created by the startup Healthvana, which has developed a system that allows you to store on your mobile device all the information related to the administration of the vaccine against the coronavirus.
It has been almost a year since the arrival of the virus that caused the most serious pandemic in recent decades. Thanks to technological innovations, made by many companies in the field, it becomes more if to deal with the situation in an effective and decisive way in the fight against the spread of the disease. A further step forward is undoubtedly the invention of the U.S. company that, adapting an application already available, is allowing the County of Los Angeles to facilitate patients during the phases of administration of the vaccine, available in the U.S. for only a few weeks.
Covid-19 vaccine, history of the app
The application, born from the collaboration between the County of Los Angeles and Healthvana, has a simple but effective mechanism of operation. The company, whose mission is to deliver medical test results and send reminders in case of treatments for different diseases, had previously made the app currently in use for sending reminders dedicated to the treatment of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
With the advent of the pandemic, the startup had decided earlier this year to extend the capabilities of its app to Covid-19 test results as well. The arrival of the vaccines subsequently prompted the startup to add to its services the sending of reminders about the various booster shots that need to be done to get full coverage against coronavirus infection.
Covid-19 vaccine, how the app works
Healthvana's app comes into play when the first dose of coronavirus vaccine is administered. In fact, as determined by the scientific committees that have analyzed the treatment, for effective coverage it is necessary for each patient to receive two different doses, about two weeks apart.
To avoid forgetting to take the booster, once the date of the second vaccination has been established, the app saves all the information on the patient's smartphone. This data, including the certificate, later becomes viewable via Apple Wallet or Google Pay, depending on the operating system installed on the user's smartphone. In this way, the user has the possibility to receive a reminder on their device as the date approaches, thus avoiding forgetting to show up for the important appointment.
Covid-19 vaccine, the future of the app
In the future, the app made by Healthvana could also be used as a pass to access locations or services that might require the vaccination certificate. Currently, however, there is no such requirement, but given the ongoing evolution of the pandemic situation worldwide, this does not rule out that in the coming months it could be exploited for such purposes.
In any case, as confirmed by Healthvana itself, all user data is stored on the cloud of Amazon Web Services, so as to preserve the privacy and sensitive information of all patients involved in the project.