Empowering yourself with accurate information on the coronavirus (COVID-19) is very important to your health and wellbeing.

To make this possible, a web-enabled App called CoronaFighter has been created and developed by Dr Jarrad van Zuydam and Dr Rick Diesel from InsightFit, and teams at Sigma Digital and Lead Robot, to provide citizens with accurate information about the virus.

Dr van Zuydam says most of the information contained in the app is sourced from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), which is a national public health institute that provides reference microbiology, virology, epidemiology, surveillance and public health research to support the government’s response to communicable disease threats.

The NICD also serves as a resource of knowledge and expertise of communicable diseases for the African continent. The institution assists in the planning of policies and programmes to respond to communicable diseases. 

“Over 30 super-talented volunteers from the Civitas Founder Network and Knife Capital’s Grindstone climbed in to build the CoronaFighter app in one week. The app allows you to track your symptoms through a simplified automated self-monitoring process,” says Dr van Zuydam.

By providing users with the tools and information they need for self-monitoring, CoronaFighter reduces pressure on testing points and protects its users from the risk of infection presented by the testing centres themselves.

Due to COVID-19’s tendency to present symptoms slowly and be passed along incredibly easily, users are encouraged to self-monitor as soon as possible.

Speaking on behalf of the developers, Paul van Zyl of Sigma Digital says the platform was developed as an open-source initiative to ensure that users get the best possible support.

“The app was designed to collect data to provide medical authorities with reactive feedback on where COVID-19 hotspots are, and aids in providing crucial data so that medical resources can be used in the most efficient way possible,” he says.

He adds that the easy-to-follow test gives South Africans an accessible way to compare their current health profile to the latest NICD guidelines.

To test yourself for COVID-19 using the app, simply sign-up on www.testforcovid.co.za with your email, phone number or Google Account. Give CoronaFighter a brief medical and travel history, and the app will be able to tell you what the latest NICD guidelines suggest you do next.

Citizens who want to volunteer their time and skills or donate to this cause may e-mail team@testforcovid.co.za

-This article was originally published in the GCIS Vuk'uzenzele.