App Maps Virus Risks In Medical Facilities
A Japanese venture company has developed a smartphone app that can identify risks of exposure to the coronavirus inside medical institutions.
The app was created by an IT firm based in Tokyo that works with the medical industry.
The app tracks people's movements inside medical facilities by having their phones communicate with sensors installed throughout the buildings.
The app can display maps of someone's movement to quickly identify possible points of exposure if someone tests positive for the virus.
It can also sound an alarm if someone approaches an area that could be contaminated.
Japan has seen a spate of in-house infections among workers and patients at medical institutions.
NHK has learned that as of April 21, nearly 10 percent of people infected in Japan were confirmed as or suspected of having contracted the virus within such institutions.
Kojima Koji, who runs the firm that developed the app, says medical staff are working in harsh conditions to fight the coronavirus. He says he hopes the app will help improve their safety.
