How can you use Technology to reduce Covid-19?
Here I will start by highlighting on what is Technology and Covid-19 as shown below;
Technology is the set of knowledge, skills, experience and techniques through which humans change, transform and use our environment in order to create tools, machines, products and services that meet our needs and desires, and technology is classified into 2 group shown below.
Hard technologies - are those that give us tangible goods.
Soft technologies - are those that give us intangibles.
Coronavirus (Covid-19) is an illness caused by a virus that can spread from person to person and one can become infected by coming into close contact (about 6 feet or two arm lengths) with a person who has Covid-19, and through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks one can be infected.
You may also be able to get it by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it, and then by touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
The following are the reasons how I can use Technology to reduce Covid-19.
E-Learning: While the whole world is fighting the invisible enemy (covid-19) which has been killing thousands of people around the global but the teaching and learning process are still carry on by using e-learning technology and its tools, in fact this technology has helped in reducing contacts between the students and the teachers who initially had to meet in one enclosed room so that a lesson can be delivered, and by using electronic-Learning technology students and teachers meet online for classes hence this practice has also helped in reducing Covid-19.
E-Commerce: In order to implement effectively the social distancing measures aimed at containing the further spread of covid-19, by encouraging electronic - commerce technology as an alternative to physical shopping, and through this technology consumer will still be able to buy whatever they want without physical movements from their homes to the crowded market areas which are the most dangerous places because there is no social distancing practiced and by embracing the e – commerce technology covid-19 is also reduced because social distancing here is highly practiced.
Caller tune
awareness: I can use technology by the help of service providers like airtel
and MTN to link caller tunes to every call in order to spread awareness about
the pandemic, this is experienced by the entire community where by if one is
calling a friend, he or she has to first listen to the caller tune that carries
the awareness message which can be inform of a short song. This helps the
person to be aware of what is happening in the country or community therefore
by doing this Covid-19 can be reduced globally.
Tracking
people with facial recognition and big data: Using big data
analytics technology can help me quickly identify infected individuals, connect
with them, track who they have come in contact with.
Therefore, Facial recognition technologies along with data can accurately
identify people’s images of those that have tested positive and their records
are put in the systems including their images, so even if they are masked. By
using these technologies, I will be able to monitor movement and tracking of
people who are quarantined. This technology also helps me in keeping a tab on
people and ascertaining whether or not they have been in contact with an
infected person. And also the use CCTV cameras along with facial recognition
technologies can help in identifying infected people who break the rules and
step out despite being quarantined, and by doing this covid-19 can be put down.
By building an Artificial Intelligence-based solutions to effectively screen
large populations and detect a change in their body temperature while they are
on the move can help in reducing covid-19 in the global because the system can examine
a large number of people per minute without disrupting the flow of people and Such
technologies can be implemented in crowded areas such as hospitals, train stations,
airports, which can easily identify sick people quickly and quarantine them
before they infect a larger population.
By using Contact-less movement
and deliveries through autonomous vehicles like Self-driving cars and robots
can all help at a time when the need is to avoid human contact for example an
Autonomous vehicle can be used to transport affected people to and from
healthcare facilities with ease, without risking the lives of healthy people. And
also robots can be used for delivering grocery, sterilizing hospitals,
patrolling the streets, and spraying disinfectant areas and through this covid-19
can be reduced because the contacts between health people and sick people is
reduced.
Through embracing the technology of wireless thermometer guns and other similar
infrared body temperature measuring devices have become the most important
medical equipment that are being used at checkpoints of offices, airports,
hotels, hospitals, train stations, shops, and other public places. These
technologies assist in measuring the body temperature from a distance and turn
out to be effective in pinpointing the individuals who might need further
investigation, this technology creates a distance between the operator of the
wireless thermometer and the person being tested and by doing this social
distance is promoted hence reducing covid-19 in the global.
Promoting remote
working technologies to support social distancing and maintain business
continuity
during the pandemics where one is able to work from home so that
business continue as well as facilitates social distancing. In such a scenario,
technologies that enable secure access to data, enterprise applications,
virtual meetings, cloud conferencing, and virtual/mixed/augmented reality are
the forefront leaders to ensure deliverables are not impacted. Remote working
is a blessing that comes due to technology and is one of the greatest solution
that helps us in social distancing and also reducing the spread of covid-19 in
the community.
Clinical management; By use of Artificial Intelligence technology can facilitate rapid diagnosis and risk prediction of Covid-19, this is done my implementing a cloud-based AI-assisted Computed Tomography service which is used to detect Covid-19 pneumonia cases by processing Computed Tomography images in seconds, differentiating Covid-19 from other lung diseases and speeding up the diagnostic process substantially hence reducing the spread of covid-19. And also these prediction models can guide clinical decision-making and resource allocation, identifying regions and hospitals in need of critical care resources and medical supplies since we all know that care resources are one of the ways to reduce covid-19 because if they are not there then a number of patients cannot survive.
Conclusion
Today the greatest risk of worldwide catastrophe is pandemic, an enormously
infectious virus that's more devastating and killing many people around the
global. The transparency that we have gained through this current Covid-19
situation, we now understand that we were not geared up for this pandemic
situation. What we actually need is preparedness. Indeed, the technology has
advanced more and will continue to advance exponentially, but the human
institutions and societies need to accelerate in adapting to Technology and
continue investing in building the technology systems for the preparedness.
After the Covid-19 outbreak, it is evident that, from Artificial Intelligence
to robotics, the technology innovations are helping to manage the epidemic and
better equip to fight future public health emergency in a timely, systematic,
and calm manner.
Key words: COVID-19, Technology
Authors Name: Nasasira Jossy
Reference
Covid-19: 8 ways in which technology helps pandemic management by By Manjunath B S.
Applications of digital technology in COVID-19 pandemic planning and response by Sera Whitelaw, Mamas A Mamas, Eric Topol, Harriette G C Van Spall 2020
The role of e-learning in covid-19 crisis by Bareq Raad Raheem, M.Amirullah Khan 2020
E-Commerce, trade and the covid-19 pandemic by World Trade Organisation 2020
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