Bluebird | COVID-19 Management

Overview

Establishing a proper and confidential information system for national surveillance of COVID-19 is a prime requirement for national Departments of Health. Bluebird was built to address the confidentiality requirements that arose in the early nineties around HIV testing (please see http://www.intelms.com/principles.html).

Bill Gates: "US testing is disorganized. Labs that perform COVID-19 testing need to be connected to a national tracking system".
The Bluebird COVID-19 confidential National Surveillance System already empowers the South African DOH to gather data and thereby allow them to redistribute resources, investigate potential cases and follow up.
The Bluebird COVID-19 National Surveillance System is based upon the proven and battle tested secure medical information system successfully used by more than 70 Southern African hospitals across the country, including the Nelson Mandela Children's Hospital and the Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital, and more than 200 ICUs (including the largest ICU in the Southern hemisphere). Bluebird has already proved invaluable in managing CRE, Candida Auris and other MDROs.

Bluebird rapidly integrates data from siloed information systems (including all testing facilities in South Africa and multiple medical facilities) into a single, cloud-based, secure platform that gives decision-makers a global view of national COVID 19 data. Because Bluebird is cloud based, no software installation or management is required.

Bluebird's COVID-19 National Surveillance System provides sections to capture Persons Under Investigation PUI (including those arriving at the country's points of entry), record patient demographics, co-morbidities, symptoms and isolation/quarantine decisions as well as the results of testing.
Bluebird provides a unified platform to actively manage cases and contacts and to intelligently analyze comprehensive data.

Mitigation

Delaying the peak of the epidemic will help ensure the availability of healthcare resources - ICU beds, ventilators, PPE, and staff that are essential to care for those patients that become critically ill. As Wuhan, Italy and now Seattle have taught us, social distancing is key during this mitigation stage.

The goals for using mitigation strategies in communities with local COVID-19 transmission are to slow the transmission of disease and in particular to protect:

Individuals at increased risk for severe illness, including older adults and persons of any age with underlying health conditions
The healthcare and critical infrastructure workforces

These approaches are used to minimize morbidity and mortality and the social and economic impacts of COVID-19. Individuals, communities, businesses, and healthcare organizations are all part of a community mitigation strategy. These strategies should be implemented to prepare for and when there is evidence of community transmission. Signals of ongoing community transmission may include detection of confirmed cases of COVID-19 with no epidemiologic link to travelers or known cases, or more than three generations of transmission. Implementation is based on:

Emphasizing individual responsibility for implementing recommended personal-level actions
Empowering businesses, schools, and community organizations to implement recommended actions, particularly in ways that protect persons at increased risk of severe illness
Focusing on settings that provide critical infrastructure or services to individuals at increased risk of severe illness
Minimizing disruptions to daily life to the extent possible

Simulation Scenarios to flatten the curve

Click Here to see a simulation that shows how different measures help flatten the epicurve.

What are the symptoms of coronavirus?

Patients with COVID-19 have mild to severe respiratory symptoms that can include fever, cough,
and/or shortness of breath

What should I do if I am experiencing symptoms of coronavirus?

If you believe you have symptoms of COVID-19, follow the steps below to help prevent the disease
from spreading to people in your home or community:

Stay home, except to get medical care. Restrict activities outside your home, avoid visiting public places,
and do not take public transportation, ride shares, or taxis.
Contact your healthcare provider if your illness is worsening. Reach out to your healthcare provider by calling
ahead before visiting the office. Tell your doctor that you have or may have coronavirus-like symptoms so they can take steps to keep other people from getting infected. If you have a medical emergency and need to call emergency services please notify the dispatch personnel that you have been, or are being, evaluated for COVID-19. If possible, put on a face mask before emergency medical services arrive.
Wear a face mask. If you have symptoms, wearing a face mask when you are around other people can help prevent the spread of the virus in your community.

The South African Department of Health has launched a WhatsApp service where updated coronavirus information is available. Use this WhatsApp number : +27 60 012 3456 and type "Hi".

Contact

Internships

Intelligent Medical Systems (Pty) Ltd
Corporate Headquarters
Ground Floor, Block B, Regent Square, Kenilworth,
Cape Town, 7700, South Africa
Phone: 087 551-7644
International: +27 21 680 5066
email: support@intelms.com

IMS Corporate Headquarters

North America
Bluebird IMS Incorporated
3500 South Dupont Highway, Dover, DE 19901. USA.
Phone: +1 617-219-9484
email: support@intelms.com

Australasia
Intelligent Medical Systems Australia (Pty) Ltd
Level 1 828 Pacific Highway Gordon NSW 2072
Phone: Sydney: +61 2-8188 4690
Phone: Brisbane: +61 7-3067 8686
email: support@intelms.com.au

Comprehensive COVID-19 Management