Sault Ste. Marie using locally-made app for COVID-19 screening
The City of Sault Ste. Marie is launching a locally developed COVID-19 screening and contact tracing app at its facilities.
Among other things, the CommunityPass app allows people to self-screen for symptoms and check-in to various locations to help with contact tracing.
CommunityPass also stores testing results and proof of COVID-19 vaccination. The app uses beacon technology and Bluetooth. Dr. Lucas Castellani, a physician at Sault Area Hospital and one of the doctors behind the project, said beacons are being installed at various city-run facilities.
“They’re going to put them in most of the community centres and buses,” said Castellani. “So if you have it turned on, on your phone that you have this auto check-in type process through Bluetooth technology, it will automatically check you in.”
GFL Memorial Gardens, which houses the Sault’s vaccination hub, and other facilities such as the John Rhodes Community Centre will have beacons installed by the city.
Brent Lamming, Sault Ste. Marie’s director of community services, said the app comes at a good time as the economy has slowly begun to reopen.
“It’s totally voluntary -- it’s not mandatory by any means,” said Lamming. “But it’s another tool in the toolbox to be able to utilize to help with contact tracing and to store your vaccination results in a one-stop spot.”
Castellani said beacons are being offered to small businesses at no cost, while the app is free for individuals to download. He said CommunityPass could be used beyond the current pandemic should we experience another one down the road.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
LIVE B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in "all public spaces," marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.