Calling programmers, designers, physicians and communicators,

We’re in some unprecedented times right now and are urgently looking for collaborators to help reduce pressure on health systems with a tested virtual solution. One of the critical issues with the rapid spread of COVID-19 has been the pressure on health care institutions. In many territories, testing facilities are overburdened, and often tests can be avoided with more knowledge on the virus or a physician consultation over distance.

Dr Ali Okhowat from mHealth Global, a physician, entrepreneur and former co-lead of the WHO Innovation Hub, is working in COVID-19 testing in Vancouver (Canada), an area heavily affected by the virus. Together with some colleagues, he distilled this early experience into a self-assessment tool that is linked to a telemedicine solution. In the first four days, 4,500 patients filled out the self-assessment form, leading to 750 virtual visits with a pool of 40 volunteer physicians. This small intervention has already reduced the pressure on the health system and has avoided the travel and testing of patients.

To scale this solution and make it accessible to a larger number of geographies, the following is needed:

• A development team;
• Web-developers - for further development of the platform (add data fields, geolocation functionality and improve the patient experience);
• UX and graphic designers to develop a seamless user interface;
• Technical support teams that can customise the platform for different geographies;
• Communication specialists to disseminate the information of the platform to different geographies and extend the use among patients.

This is a not-for-profit initiative, initiated by mHealth Global to support the response to COVID-19 globally.

Please contact the team ASAP if you can offer help.

Dr Ali Okhowat, physician and entrepreneur
Pascal Fröhlicher, Visiting Scholar at Harvard Medical School

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Image: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention