Contact Tracing: 5 Advantages and 3 Disadvantages

Introduction : As we know, the infectious disease COVID-19 became a pandemic, causing many deaths. This virus originated in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. To combat this contagious virus, Google and Apple collaborated to develop a technology that helps reduce its spread while ensuring user privacy and security.

This technology allows health and government agencies to be informed about positive coronavirus cases directly by patients. This information enables these agencies to take actions such as isolating positive patients and their primary contacts and providing immediate medical support like ventilators and medicines.

Image Courtesy : Google , Apple Inc.

Contact tracing uses Bluetooth and beacon connectivity and does not use GPS. Specific apps are available for download on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Positive COVID-19 patients use these apps to upload their health status. Health authorities also use the apps to collect data and inform people who have been in contact with positive patients.

Image Courtesy : Google , Apple Inc.

Here’s how it works:

• 1. Alice and Bob meet for the first time.
• 2. Bob is diagnosed with COVID-19. He enters his test result into the app provided by the public health department.
• 3. With Bob’s consent, his phone details are broadcast to the cloud.
• 4. Alice, unaware of Bob’s diagnosis, receives a notification on her phone from the health department. She will also receive notifications about other positive COVID-19 patients in her area.
• 5. Alice is then contacted by health authorities with instructions on what steps to take.

Advantages of Contact Tracing Method

Following are some of the benefits of contact tracing method.

1. Reduced Virus Spread: This technology can significantly reduce the spread of coronavirus.
2. Accessibility: Bluetooth technology is widely available in Android and iOS mobile phones, making it accessible to a vast number of users at no cost.
3. Privacy and Security: The technology prioritizes the privacy and security of mobile phone users.
4. Early Detection and Intervention: Contact tracing enables health authorities to quickly identify and notify individuals who may have been exposed to the virus, allowing for early testing, isolation and treatment to prevent further transmission.
5. Data Driven Decision Making: Aggregated contact tracing data helps public health officials track infection patterns, assess outbreak severity and make informed decisions on containment measures and resource allocation.

Disadvantages of Contact Tracing

Following are some of the drawbacks or limitations of contact tracing method.

1. Reliance on Voluntary Participation: The success of the technology hinges on patients voluntarily entering their information into the contact tracing app.
2. Limited Monitoring Capabilities: The lack of GPS usage makes it difficult for authorities to monitor breaches of self-isolation or quarantine.
3. Potential for Increased Surveillance Costs: Enforcing lockdowns and self-isolation might require the use of drones, increasing the cost of the data surveillance system.

Conclusion: In summary, the contact tracing method played a vital role in controlling the spread of COVID-19 by enabling early detection of exposure, timely isolation and effective intervention. Leveraging widely available technologies like Bluetooth, it provided a scalable and privacy conscious approach to pandemic management. While it faced challenges related to adoption rates, data accuracy and privacy concerns, contact tracing proved to be a crucial tool in reducing transmission and supporting informed public health responses during the pandemic.