Cebu firm develops Web app for real-time updating of COVID-19 cases
CEBU CITY, Philippines —A group of web developers and volunteers have come up with an app designed to help gather information on probable and confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease 2019.
Edward Paul Bonjoc, chief executive and solutions architect of the OBox Apps company, said the PH COVID Web app aims to provide medical front liners a platform to upload information related to the coronavirus 2019.
OBox, which was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in June 2017, is a startup partnership company based in Cebu City. Aside from Bonjoc, the partners include Janina Coyoca, operations manager; Roxanne Arias – finance and functional analyst; and Ralph Silva, test manager/ database administrator.
According to Bonjoc, OBox got involved in the project when Maybelle Niniel asked for his help to come up with a solution for a local government unit (LGU) in Victorias City, Negros Occidental.
“In OBox, we’re advocates of Technology as a means to help our society. We’re constantly pushing technology innovations in the country, especially those small to medium enterprise/clients. We’ve decided to help Maybelle and the LGU in Negros,” he said.
While the company agreed to help in coming up with the solution, they could not do it on their own.
“Since we have limited resources as startup, we’ve asked help from our IT specialist contacts; for them to offer their help/expertise to help fight the global pandemic,” Bonjoc said.
Those involved include database administrator and tester Maybelle Niniel; developers Cristina Niniel-Escoton (based in the US); Jan Darryl Valmores (based in Consolacion); Wilson del Mundo (based in Laguna) and, Cebu-based Clifford Diaz; and Aubrey Rose Gabisay.
Environmental and IT advocate Kimberly Punay also served as tester of the app while graphics artist: Grace Semilla-Bulay was the app designer.
The app allows the consolidation of information from various areas, Bonjoc said. However, the information would be on a need-to-know basis, which means that not all information will be available to all authorized users, he added.
The following are the features of the PH COVID Web app:
• Web App is very secured using Google’s Cloud Security protocols;
• Web App is role-based, restricting data access to limited & authorized users;
• Easy controlled access by health workers/frontliners, restricted by location (city/barangay), even specific assigned hospitals;
• Doctors /nurses/healthworkers can access the information through their mobile phones
• Since most doctors in the same hospitals do rotation checkups, app enables them to manage patients in the same hospital;
• Realtime reporting to authorized personnel such as Department of Health officials, government officials, governors and mayors can be granted restricted reports access, respecting the confidentiality of patient’s sensitive data;
• Accurate and consolidated Reporting – by region, province, city, barangay; and
• Data Load functionality, from existing excel files/existing data in health centers and hospitals.
Bonjoc said the app’s production database would be strictly managed by three database administrators, for administration and issues tracing.
The LGU in Sagay City, Negros Occidental is currently using the web app.
“They (Sagay City LGU) have loaded their Persons Under Monitoring (PUMs) in the system, and still preparing their remaining data upload, to transfer existing data from hardcopies/papers to the app. Moving forward, they will use the app in real time recordings of PUMs and Persons Under Investigation (PUIs),” he added.
A Web App is an application that can be accessed via browser in desktop or mobile phones.
The team decided to launch it first as a web app since web apps can be corrected fast in cases of development updates. When it becomes stable, an Android version will be published in Google Play, Bonjoc said.
They will be coming up with version 2 of the app, which would include barangay health workers, who will be identified by the local health offices, to help in the contract tracing of possible infected individuals.
The team has yet to present the PH COVID Web app to the Department of Health officials and local executives in Central Visayas, Bonjoc said, but they hope the app would be adopted as it would provide real-time updating of information on the coronavirus 2019 cases. /rcg
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