Baliwag pushes digital contact tracing
BALIWAG, Bulacan: The Municipality of Baliwag is pushing for a technologically advanced contact tracing platform, which uses a QR code, that needs to be displayed in every establishment in the town to track down possible carriers of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
According to Mayor Ferdie Estrella, Iamsafe is a contact-tracing platform developed by the Municipal Information and Communications Technology
Office (Micto).
He said the aim of the digital application was to accelerate local government data gathering and monitoring of local residents and visitors.
“Iamsafe will serve as the new logbook for every establishment in Baliwag, as part of the government’s safety protocol, and for the safety and well-being of every citizen,” Estrella said.
Brainard Ardoña, head of the Micto, also explained that Iamsafe can be used by everyone. He said anyone could just go to the website iamsafe. baliwag. gov. ph to create an account and screenshot the provided QR or barcode, which will be displayed at every destination in Baliwag town.
Smartphone applications are seen as promising options to automate some of the work health workers have traditionally been asked to do.
The digital application could silently track the people one had in contact with and if ever they tested positive for Covid-19, the phone app would send a notification informing the user of potential exposure.
Tech giants Apple and Google have modified their operating systems to allow phones’ Bluetooth functions to do this work.
But the Covid- 19 Task Force in Baliwag still strongly advises residents to follow the government’s designated minimum health standards, including face mask wearing, frequent handwashing and physical distancing.
Mayor Estrella is one of the successful coronavirus recoveries in the province, which as of May reached 68.
Bulacan Gov. Daniel Fernando said it was good news knowing that the number of recoveries in the province was continuously growing.
According to the provincial health office head Dr. Jocelyn
Gomez, the City of San Jose del Monte has recorded 12 recovered patients; the City of Malolos and town of Bulakan, seven recoveries each; the towns of Baliwag and Marilao, six recoveries each; the town of Bocaue, five recoveries; the towns of Calumpit, Santa Maria and the City of Meycauayan, 45 recoveries each; towns of Pandi, Guiguinto and San Rafael, three recoveries each; the towns of Angat and Pulilan, two recovered patients each; and the towns of Balagtas, Bustos, Hagonoy and San Ildefonso, 1 recoveries each.