How Abu Dhabi's New Contact Tracing Assistant System Works

Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre (ADPHC) in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Department of Health (DOH) has launched the first investigation and contact tracing system in the region – the "Contact Tracing Assistant System". The system is designed to conduct a virtual chat with positive COVID-19 cases.

The goal of this system is to expand the scope of COVID-19 investigations to be more comprehensive, help predict and prevent COVID-19 transmission between community members, and communicate efficiently with positive cases in the shortest possible time.

Once a positive case receives his/her COVID-19 result, the system automatically sends them an SMS with a link for the virtual chat. After verification of his\her Emirates ID is completed, the person will proceed with dialogue by answering specific questions to complete the process.

The system allows the investigation and contact tracing team to gather necessary information, such as who is returning from abroad, or a workplace, or who has recently come in contact with a positive case, to expand the investigation process.

It will also ask for a list of possible contacts 48 hours before the positive result. The information obtained will be considered confidential and will not be shared with anyone outside the investigation team. In addition, the centre’s team will review the data entered and make any necessary calls to complete missing or unclear information.

The system is available only in Arabic and English.

On this occasion, Abdulla bin Mohamed Al Hamed, Chairman of DOH, thanked the country's leadership for their continuous support, which enabled Abu Dhabi to make remarkable achievements in responding to the coronavirus pandemic, to lead by example globally, and to ensure the health and safety of the emirate’s community.

Al Hamed said, "Abu Dhabi has led by example and used advanced technology in tracing virus transmission. The new Contact Tracing Assistant System will help in controlling the transmission and ensure the health and safety of all members of the community. We praise all the efforts shown by the centre since the beginning of the pandemic."

Matar Al Nuaimi, Director-General of ADPHC, said the new collaborative system will contribute toward better communication with patients and possible contacts, and take the appropriate preventative measures towards each case.