IRELAND'S OWN Covid-19 track and trace app has been launched after months of development.
People throughout the country are urged to download the app, which will help identify close contacts of anyone who has contracted the disease, therefore slowing the spread of the virus.
The trace and track app aims to "enable the health services to improve the speed and effectiveness of contact tracing and to map and predict the spread of Covid-19".
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said that the app will not tell you whether you have tested positive for the virus, but after you receive a positive test it will allow you to notify anyone you have been in close contact with via the app.
The COVID Tracker app is now available to download. It will help in the fight against coronavirus. Download the COVID Tracker app here: https://t.co/CUrWQ9QVvj
We’ll protect your privacy, and you’ll help us protect everyone. Stay safe. Protect each other. #COVID19 #StaySafe pic.twitter.com/WVRFOUwAT7— HSE Ireland (@HSELive) July 7, 2020
Those who are notified that they have been in close contact with a Covid-19 positive patient are then urged to self-isolate and receive a test as soon as possible.
The launch of the app comes after Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn revealed some worrying statistics indicating that people are not taking up the offer of a test if they have been identified as a close contact of a coronavirus patient.
"Between mid-May to the end of June, 35% of those identified as a close contact of a confirmed case did not take up the offer of a test," he said at a press briefing yesterday.
"Every case has the potential to turn into a cluster, which in turn has the potential to spread through a community. If you are identified as a close contact, please take up the offer of a test without delay."
The Republic of Ireland's official coronavirus death toll stands at 1,741; unchanged for two days.
25,531 people have contracted the virus in Ireland since the pandemic began.
You can download the track and trace app here.
