SLU Researchers Develop App to Track COVID-19 Symptoms

January 1, 2021

Former NGA Director Robert Sharp (at left), who joined UMSL Chancellor Kristin Sobolik in signing an Educational Partnership Agreement between UMSL and NGA last year, is joining the UMSL Geospatial Collaborative as a research fellow and will help guide efforts to lead collaborative K-16 workforce and talent development. (Photo courtesy of Jessica Daues/NGA)

As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the world, researchers pondered the spread of the disease and what the risks of individual and community transmission rates were in various locations.

To address this, SLU researchers Enbal Shacham, Ph.D., a professor of behavioral science and health education and associate director of the SLU Geospatial Institute (GeoSLU); Flavio Esposito, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science; and Roberto Coral, a research assistant in computer science, developed an app to monitor real-time symptoms and the location of symptomatic individuals.

The app helps to track the spread of COVID-19 at an individual level and enables contact tracing. Users can go onto the app multiple times a day to track if they are experiencing any recognized symptom for COVID-19.