I had experience using a contact tracing app called “Taiwan Social Distancing App” to help manage and control the spread of COVID-19. This app was developed by the Taiwanese government and was used to track individuals’ movements and monitor their quarantine status during the pandemic using GPS and Bluetooth tracking.
There were some limitations of this app:
1. Privacy Concerns: It has faced privacy concerns, with users hesitant to share personal information due to potential misuse or data breaches.
2. Limited User Engagement: User adoption rates for contact tracing apps have been uneven, partly due to user interface issues and a lack of engagement strategies. Since the app was only availabe in Chinese, it was difficult for foreign residents to widely use it. It also received several complaints in Playstore for not being able to use in some phone models and brands.
Knowledge and Skills of Health Informatics to Improve the Project:
1. Ethical Considerations: Health informatics experts can help identify and address ethical dilemmas related to data collection, storage, and usage, building public trust in the app.
2. User-Centered Design: Health informatics professionals can apply user-centered design principles to create a more user-friendly interface, improving user engagement and overall usability.