Covid-19: how is digital helping to counter the epidemic?

As the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic spreads, in Switzerland and elsewhere, technologies are multiplying in an attempt to curb the disease, or at least to help patients and healthcare staff. Among them, digital technology has its card to play: chatbots, robots, telemedicine and big data are being deployed to help gather information, reassure the population, treat patients, make a diagnosis or even prepare future vaccines. Here's a non-exhaustive overview of the technologies currently in use, with the list growing by the day.

Covid-19 is the first major epidemic of our century. It represents an excellent opportunity for the many digital health companies and technologies to see what they can do to help thwart this threat. It's also an opportunity to rethink the doctor-patient relationship. "The coronavirus, although it weighs negatively on our lives, represents an opportunity to rethink the whole model of how we see our patients, certainly using technology," says Dr. Shafi Ahmed, English physician and pioneer of virtual reality surgery, in an interview with the Mobihealthnews website.

In China, tech giants have responded to the pandemic by deploying autonomous vehicles to supply medical staff, equipping drones with thermal cameras to improve virus detection, and lending their computing power to help develop a vaccine. Alibaba has announced that it has developed a new diagnostic tool based on artificial intelligence. According to the Chinese giant, its algorithm is capable of detecting infections with an accuracy rate of up to 96%, all in around 20 seconds.

Baidu, the Chinese equivalent of Google, has developed an artificial intelligence model to detect people not wearing protective masks. Another problem with masks is that when half the face is hidden, traditional facial recognition solutions no longer work properly. As a result, citizens are forced to remove their masks to pay for groceries or gain access to a building, which poses hygiene problems. SenseTime, a Hong Kong company specializing in automatic crowd surveillance, has developed an identification system that works despite the need to wear a protective mask.

Robots and chatbots out in force

In the Kaifu district (Hunan province), robots measure body temperature, record data and disinfect employees' hands when they arrive at work in the morning. Thisimproves control efficiency and reduces labor costs. The United States is no slouch when it comes to deploying digital solutions. The first person to be diagnosed in the United States was treated not only by a handful of healthcare professionals, but also by a robot, according to CNN Health. This robot, equipped with a stethoscope, takes the man's vital signs and communicates with him on a large screen.

Chatbots are also widely used in the USA. These conversational robots reassure people and help them seek treatment, while keeping them out of emergency care centers. Seattle-based start-up 98point6 offers virtual visits via its app. Patients start chatting with an artificial intelligence before being transferred to a doctor who continues the conversation via SMS. At the end of January, Bright.md, a Portland-based start-up, launched its own coronavirus screening system. Its product uses AI to conduct remote interviews with patients. When Bright.md's app flags a possible case of coronavirus, the software automatically arranges a video meeting with a doctor.

In Israel, the Sheba Medical Center applied telemedicine to 12 quarantined patients. Remote monitoring of treatment protocols, medical examinations without the presence of medical staff and a robot controlled remotely by doctors (with screen, camera and medical equipment) were deployed on site.

In France, which has just announced the closure of its schools, the Doctolib website specializing in medical appointments is offering free teleconsultation for all doctors in the country for the duration of the epidemic. In Switzerland, Unisanté (CHUV) in Lausanne has launched an online test to assess the risk of carrying the virus. It is available at www.coronacheck.ch. 

Digital epidemiology on the rise

Digital technology also plays a key role in providing information, and therefore in anticipating disease. This is what we call digital epidemiology, which consists of collecting, analyzing and sorting the gigantic masses of data produced on the Internet. This technique is made simpler these days, thanks to hyper-connected populations. "The data exists, but public health agencies have to chase it down, which takes time. Digital epidemiology offers tools that enable them to be more responsive", explains Marcel Salathé, Professor of Digital Epidemiology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, in an interview with Le Temps newspaper.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, based in Sweden, uses the Internet and social networks to monitor the emergence of disease. As part of the Epidemic Intelligence project, data specialists and medical epidemiologists analyze the Internet, the media and social networks in search of new cases. But their task is enormous. In the case of the coronavirus, for example, millions of tweets are analyzed every day.

In a similar vein, Harvard University has developed HealthMap. This interactive map monitors the epidemic. On a global map, each dot corresponds to a clinical case, political decision or press article. These initiatives, which are multiplying, give a fairly precise and, above all, very rapid idea of the virus's progress. Digital technology avoids the slowness of the usual processes, during which medical information is passed up from the field to health agencies, before being communicated to the general public.

Finally, the Health Tech Hub, based in Copenhagen, uses the power of digital technology to disseminate and share information. It has just launched a worldwide call for solutions. The idea is to identify the best available solutions and share them online after validation. 

A "synthetic" copy of the virus

Researchers at a laboratory at the University of North Carolina are going even further than counting and informing: they are trying to create a copy of the virus. To do this, they are using only computer readouts of the genetic sequence made available online by Chinese laboratories last January. Creating a "synthetic" virus gives researchers powerful means to study treatments, vaccines and how mutations could make the virus more dangerous.

As you can see, the range of solutions, particularly digital ones, is vast. It could well be multiplied, especially if the coronavirus continues to spread. To be continued...