Mass Immunization Efforts Get Help of Mobile App

A mobile app called HANDI is helping the U.S. Department Health & Human Services in mass immunization campaigns. Its purpose: to allow public health workers to register individuals, collect information and track immunizations, then transfer the data into necessary databases.

A mobile app called HANDI is helping the U.S. Department Health & Human Services in mass immunization campaigns. Its purpose: to allow public health workers to register individuals, collect information and track immunizations, then transfer the data into necessary databases.

HANDI, which stands for Hand-held Automated Notification for Drugs and Immunizations, will not save time during the actual mass immunization process. But it will facilitate more efficient data processing without any paperwork.

The app will run on mobile devices equipped with compatible scanner attachments and will be used in a three-step process. Here’s how it works: First, a worker scans or swipes a driver’s license or other employee ID and enters necessary ID info into the app. A mobile printer prints a bar-coded label that becomes the patient’s identifier. Then, a worker scans the barcode and records information about the person’s health background. Finally, in the third step comes during the vaccination. Here the barcode is scanned again and information about the vaccine, dosage and location is entered.

All this new information is saved on a server, then sent to a designated database or registry, similar to a state immunization registry.

The goal of the app is to support efficient public health immunization and treatment activities through rapid collection and transfer of standardized data. This data can be used to help with many public health and mass casualty situations.