FluCARE Web App
- Design, Development, Website
- design, development, websites
- June 30, 2021
Date: Ongoing Since 2018
Client, Brief & Objective
The InFLUenza outbreak Communication, Advice and REporting app, or FluCARE, has been developed by a team from the Public Health Unit (PHU) at Sydney Local Health District (SLHD), with the help of software developer, FAQ Interactive.
In 2017, PHU won a small grant for the design, implementation and evaluation of FluCARE at The Pitch, SLHD’s quarterly funding challenge for innovative ideas of staff. The team spent 2 years developing the web-based application, which was then piloted in approximately 30 residential aged-care facilities in the District in 2019. The app’s algorithm analyses the data in real-time and automatically triggers alerts when the criteria for an outbreak is reached, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It sends email notifications to key response personnel, including the facility’s manager, the District’s on-call public health officer and designated GPs.
FAQ Development
FAQ was engaged back in 2017, to develop FluCARE from the ground up. The client initially provided a spreadsheet and a powerpoint presentation.
FAQ worked with a group of PHU staff for several months to develop a scope of works for FluCARE and then once signed off, it went into production in early 2018.
Since the initial Minimum Viable Product was developed, several additions and enhancements have been developed and deployed.
Result/Outcome
FluCARE has been rolled out across approximately 30 aged care facilities and has the capacity for many more.
In 2020, FAQ was engaged by PHU, to deploy a series of changes to FluCARE to enable it to also accept data and monitor for COVID-19 outbreaks in Aged Care facilities.
FAQ continues to support and develop FluCARE, in conjunction with Sydney Local Health District. Watch a full presentation on FluCARE on Youtube.
“The app will help to better protect the elderly who are among the most vulnerable members in our community when it comes to influenza outbreaks. We called the app FluCARE, because we care,”
Dr Emma Quinn, epidemiologist
Sydney Local Health District
