Epidemic Prevention and Control:

Digital Technology and its Impact

Astha Chandodwala (B001)

Mrunal Sinkar (B007)

Shubham Jain (B020)

Saagarika Khandelwal (B025)

 COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Deaths Per Capita SOUTH KOREA
Successfully Integrated DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY into
government-coordinated containment and mitigation
processes—

Surveillance Contact Tracing

SOUTH KOREA
Testing Strict Quarantine

USA

Pandemic Preparedness before

COVID19

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
 Immigration
records
Planning and
National Health
Tracking Allowed Health-care facilities to access
Insurance
Database
patients’ travel histories and identify
individuals for SARS-CoV-2 testing and tracking

Migration maps
Singapore Ministry of Health

Mobile Social
phones Mobile Media
payment
applications

Machine learning
models
• Regional Transmission dynamics of
SARS-CoV-2
• Guide border checks and surveillance
Contact Tracing Country Application
South Korea
Receive emergency text alerts
about new COVID-19 cases in
their region, and people who
could have been in contact
with infected individuals are
instructed to report to testing
centres and self-isolate.
Singapore
TraceTogether app. Widely
received among citizenry (70%
support).
Germany
Corona-Warn app. Voluntary
download; available on Apple
iOS and Android software
devices.
https://ghrp.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s41256-020-00164-1#Tab1
Technology used Impact
Security camera footage, facial
recognition technology, bank card
records, and global
positioning system (GPS) data from
vehicles and mobile phones to
provide real-time data.
Maintained one of the
lowest per-capita
COVID-19 mortality
rates in the
Exchanges short-distance Bluetooth
World relative to other
signals when
countries, despite a
Individuals are in proximity to each
high prevalence of
other.
cases
Bluetooth API technology to scan
identification codes on nearby
phones. Notification to user upon
exposure to proximal code.
Screening for High-performance infrared thermal cameras: To capture real-time
thermal images to detect individuals with fever in public places
Infection and
self-isolation Combine patient-reported symptoms data obtained from mobile
technology with other datasets such as clinical and genomic sequencing
Screening
data.

Use of digital thermometers to collect real-time data on clusters of

febrile illness and capturing resting heart rate with a smartwatch
application.

Offcials issue COVID-19 health Individuals breaching quarantine People in self-isolation are
status certificate and travel pass forced to wear Tracking devices, required to wear a wristband
using Quick Read (QR) code with fines levied for further linked through cloud
system. instances of breaking the technology to a database
restrictions. that alerts authorities if
Unrestricted travel quarantine is breached.
Restricted travel
14- day Quarantine
 Cloud-based AI-assisted CT service
Processes CT images in seconds, differentiating
COVID-19 from other lung diseases and
Clinical speeding up the diagnostic process substantially.
management
Critical care resources
and medical staff
Predict the likelihood
Machine Learning of developing acute respiratory
Clinical Nearby hospitals &
Algorithms decision Morgue
distress & critical illness among
-making
infected patients Ventilators
Medical supplies
Virtual Care Platforms February, 2020 Mid-May, 2020
• Video conferencing
• Remote health care to
patients
• Telemedicine
• Digital Payment options
• E-pharmacies Clinician-to-patient video visits
Case Study: Two and a half years after the first case was
discovered, the outbreak ended with more
West Africa

28,600 11,325
2014- 2016

cases deaths

Stakeholders involved in the international response

effort Lacked digitized information on
• the location of cases
• accurate maps for logistics
• population estimates
• treatment centers
• community outreach
• and social mobilization efforts

The response to this outbreak failed

both in development or deployment of novel digital
technologies, as well as prompt recognition by global
organizations of the scale of the outbreak.
References: 1. Can Digital Health Help Stop the Next Epidemic?
https://www.csis.org/analysis/can-digital-health-help-stop-next-epidemic

2. Applications of digital technology in COVID-19 pandemic planning and response

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/landig/PIIS2589-7500(20)30142-4.pdf

3. New technologies in predicting, preventing and controlling emerging infectious diseases

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4720248/

4. Covid-19: 8 ways in which technology helps pandemic management

https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/next-gen-technologies/covid-19-8-ways-in-which-technology-helps-pandemic-
management/75139759