Provincial Disaster Management Authority

COVID-19 Command & Control Centre & Health Assessment Mobile Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA)

PDMA hires services of Sapphire Consulting for development of COVID Assessment Mobile App and GIS enabled Dashboard to track and control the spread of COVID.

Business Objective

PDMA Sindh, is responsible for combating natural or man-induced disasters at the provincial level for securing lives and livelihoods of the affected population of the province. At the onset of COVID, PDMA was tasked to ensure that during the surge and peak of pandemic there should be enough capacity at healthcare centres to tackle the high inflow of COVID patients and at the same time maintain essential services. This required careful planning via use of technology and outreach to general public for immediate reporting of COVID cases.

Challenges

Due to the nature of pandemic, solution was to be developed in shortest possible time. Requirements were partial, fast-evolving and needed to be accommodated immediately. Awareness of this initiative and acceptance in public needed proper communication and response planning.

Solution

SCS was engaged to develop a coronavirus Mobile Application and Administrative Control Panel System with GIS enabled Dashboard. The app enabled people to get an at-home risk assessment based on how they feel and where they have been. The decision support system than directed those deemed at risk to the nearest definitive testing facility. The Dashboard provided local and public health officials with real time information on emerging demographics of those most at risk for coronavirus so they can better target prevention and treatment initiatives. The application also helped to provide analytics and key area identification to take administrative action based on COVID spreading at district and sub-district level.

Business Outcomes/Results

  • The solution strengthened the provincial health system and rapidly reorganized service delivery to respond to COVID-19 pandemic. 
  • The information collected aided in rapid and accurate identification of geographic regions, including cities, counties, towns and villages, where the pandemic was active, along with the relative risk associated in that region. 
  • It also helped to better target prevention and treatment initiatives.