Contact tracing for tracking the spread of COVID-19 has brought up concerns about privacy. Perhaps that is because it involves the tracking of who we have been in contact with not just where we have been. This seems to be quite an intrusion. Americans have accepted that many apps geo-locate where they are at any given time but pairing that with who I am with seems to be a bridge too far for some.
DailyBreath performs a type of contact tracing, but in this case, it is tracking contact with environmental exposures. And, because these environmental exposures include pollution and pollen, where a person experiences these is important for an understanding at an individual and community level of where risk is highest for experiencing symptoms.
Geo-location revolutionized how we anticipate traffic using various apps and now DailyBreath aims to revolutionize how those with asthma anticipate risk of experiencing symptoms based on the environmental conditions they may encounter during their day. By informing people of the when, where, and what of THEIR symptoms through symptom tracking (‘a situation report’), DailyBreath enables vulnerable populations to anticipate exposure risk in their community, but individually, it allows them to understand uniquely how they experience exposures daily; what they experience and where? Armed with this situational awareness, they are empowered to be health prepared for the environmental conditions they may encounter in their daily asthma journey.
When users track their symptoms, they are contributing to the crowdsourcing of flare-ups that provides a community-wide view of areas where others like them may be at risk. This use of data is for the public good. It informs others who have asthma like you where there may be exposures that are problematic. In the case of pollution, it provides community stakeholders an understanding of where specific pollutant risks like exhaust from traffic corridors, smoke from wildfires, or pollution from industrial areas are impacting vulnerable populations. This may give communities a roadmap for mitigation, resilience, and adaptation efforts to reduce pollution and its impacts., and subsequently the health of all in the community.
Download from either the Apple App or Google Play Store or text “DB4CAST” to 72345 directly from your smartphone. Pinpoint your asthma triggers; for yourself, for others, and for the good of all, but it starts with you!
Authored by Eric Klos, CEO and Founder, DailyBreath, a cloud based SAAS company delivering personalized environmental insights for better asthma outcomes. DailyBreath is a mobile app that helps those with asthma pinpoint THEIR triggers.