COVID-19 Comms: How Brands are Helping Through Healthcare Initiatives?
With the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases across the world, the healthcare industry has been working tirelessly to fight the ongoing battle. Behind the frontlines, companies from all walks of life are chipping in by donating medical supplies, developing mobile apps to make healthcare services more accessible, building software to monitor one’s health and ensure social distancing, and increasing the production of medical supplies. Healthcare professionals are also hosting webinars to share to empower the public with healthcare and hygiene tips.
Here are some initiatives from companies in APAC that aim to keep audiences in the pink of health.
Digital Health Platforms
Healthcare platform Fullerton Health launched a COVID-19 symptom checker and chat function on its LiveFuller mobile application platform. The free-for-use app features the debut of an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled symptom checker, which is offered in the four official languages: English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. The checker provides recommendations on next steps for users and directs them to where they can seek care or additional information, such as subsidised care at public health clinics or mental health helplines. Fullerton Health intends to make the symptom checker available for free across Asia-Pacific. Another function is the in-app chat function, which is operated in both English and Mandarin, and users can interact with a Fullerton Health team member through leaving a message or voice note.
Insurance company Prudential has launched an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered mobile app, Pulse by Prudential. The app provides Singapore residents with 24/7 access to healthcare services and real-time health information. With Pulse, users can check their symptoms; conduct a digital health assessment to understand future disease risks, and seek timely health advice without having to leave their homes. Prudential is also providing a daily allowance to Pulse users in the event that they are hospitalized for COVID-19. The digital health app empowers people to take charge of their health, well-being, while more value-added services will be rolled out in the second half of this year.
AI solutions company AI Hub Singapore has created a mobile application, SafeDistancer that turns mobile devices into social distance monitoring instruments. The app makes use of AI and computer vision to detect human movement in the phone’s camera frame and monitors the distance between people in real-time. When people are too close together, the app will emit alarms to highlight breaches. The application respects personal privacy as it does not send images across a network. It is designed to not recognize faces, nor does it store any images on the device. To make it easier for businesses to come on board, the app can be integrated with existing enterprise infrastructure.
DoctorOnCall Partners Shopee Malaysia to Offer More COVID-19 Test Options to Shoppers
Malaysia-based digital health platform DoctorOnCall has partnered with e-commerce platform Shopee Malaysia. On the DoctorOnCall official store on Shopee Mall, customers can purchase COVID-19 real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) test kits. They can also buy vouchers on Shopee to purchase medication and have them delivered to their homes via the DoctorOnCall platform. The two companies are co-hosting a series of online health education and awareness programmes on Shopee Live, which covers topics such as immunization and healthy ways to celebrate Hari Raya Puasa, which falls on 24 May.
Medical Supplies
In response to the sharp spike in infection cases in foreign worker dormitories in Singapore, medical healthcare start-up DoctorxDentist has partnered with air purifier company Blueair and healthcare firm Shulke to donate 100 units of air purifiers and 500 bottles of hand sanitizers to the Community Isolation Facility at Singapore Expo, where some of the workers are housed. With the rise in fake medical news, especially around COVID-19, DoctorxDentist, which is a free online platform offering professional and trusted medical advice, has allowed only certified medical specialists who are registered with the Singapore Medical Council to contribute on the platform.
SEASUN BIOMATERIALS to launch COVID-19 Rapid Molecular Assay
Korean Biotech company SEASUN BIOMATERIALS launched its second COVID-19 assay, AQ-TOP COVID-19 Rapid Detection Kit on 1 May. The kit, which tests for COVID-19, can be used on its own without having to purchase additional equipment. As soon as the permit for the Rapid Detection Kit has been completed, it will be made available globally to facilitate rapid COVID-19 diagnosis.
Yiling Pharmaceutical to Increase Productivity of Lianhua Qingwen
Pharmaceutical company Yiling is increasing the production of Lianhua Qingwen, a traditional Chinese medicine that is used mainly for the treatment of colds and viral influenza. The company is set to increase its production of the medicine to meet the rising demand for the treatment as it is used to alleviate the symptoms of COVID-19. The State Drug Administration of China recently approved the supplemental drug application for “mild/common types of fever, cough and fatigue in the conventional treatment of novel coronavirus pneumonia”. Additionally, the medication has been approved to enter Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of influenza in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration.
Medical Advice
International pharmaceutical company Fosun Pharma invited Chinese and foreign experts to share and discuss their experiences in fighting COVID-19 and provide updates on clinical research, in order to step up the fight against the virus in Africa. Professor Lu Hongzhou, CPC Committee Secretary of Shanghai Public Health Clinical Centre and an infectious disease expert, together with three other renowned national and international experts, interacted online with health officials and healthcare professionals from over 10 African countries. They held a webinar that focused on the management of COVID-19 in African medical facilities with limited resources. Nearly 400 healthcare professionals from Africa joined the meeting.
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This blog post is contributed by Stephanie Lau, Senior Audience Development Executive at PR Newswire. Stephanie leads PR Newswire’s audience development team in Singapore. She oversees media partnerships, media database and organizes media events and interviews. Prior to joining PR Newswire, she had three years of experience working in PR agencies.
Stephanie.Lau 