The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association is working with Contact Harald, which provides a Bluetooth technology contact tracing solution that enables employers to identify team members who have come into contact with a person affected by COVID-19.
This technology, whose database can help trace a potential COVID-19 exposure as far back as 20 days, can inform people when they should self-quarantine or isolate to protect themselves and others around them.
“Over the past year, COVID-19 has altered the way everyday life functions as we have grown accustomed to new safety precautions such as social distancing, enhanced hygiene, and self-quarantining when appropriate. Each of these strategies, and others, are intended to limit the spread of coronavirus,” VHHA President and CEO Sean T. Connaughton said. “This Bluetooth badge system developed by Contact Harald is an innovative data intelligence tool that can help employers reduce the risk for viral transmission among their workforce, which in turn helps health care providers and public health officials as we all work together to confront COVID-19. We are pleased to partner on making this resource available to support other strategies that are in place to fight this pandemic.”
Contact Harald’s proprietary technology solution is built on a Bluetooth platform whose sensor rests inside a credit card-sized device (similar to an employee badge or ID card) that is worn on a lanyard. To protect user privacy, the Bluetooth Proximity Tracking Card only records card-to-card proximity (via time stamp).
There is no need for users to download an app, connect the device to their phone, a WiFi network, or to sync the devices to existing IT systems or charge them.
The platform has a secure, private registration system. It promotes employee visual compliance and protection for health care staff, patients, and visitors by enabling the rapid isolation of potentially infected individuals.
The system is also compliant with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) standards.
“Contact Harald is on a mission to provide a simple, private, and easily accessible option for organizations to implement contact tracing,” said Matias Monges of Contact Harald Americas Go-To-Market. “We are excited to partner with VHHA to bring this solution to health care organizations and assure continuity during these critical times.”
“This platform enhances existing public health efforts through a simple system that is easy to deploy in workplace settings, without requiring additional IT support or network connectivity, that provides an extra layer of protection for all frontline health care providers, as well as employees in other industries,” VHHA Shared Services CEO David S. Jenkins said.
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