Digital contact tracing solutions for COVID-19 must offer exceptional speed and achieve high take-up rates to be useful, according to a working paper released by the Centre for Social Data Analytics (Auckland University of Technology) and the Institute for Social Science Research (The University of Queensland).
Australasian researchers led by Professor Rhema Vaithianathan (Auckland University of Technology, The University of Queensland) use a simple graphical model of infection transmissions to illustrate why COVID-19 is particularly challenging to manage with traditional manual contact tracing.
Speed
The researchers demonstrate how the epidemiological features of COVID-19 mean that, even before a patient becomes symptomatic, their contacts may have already infected a significant number of people. The authors come down firmly on the side of contact tracing solutions that offer instantaneous notifications (with the opportunity for follow up by public health officers to ensure isolation has occurred).
Uptake
Assuming that an instantaneous solution is adopted, the researchers explain how policymakers can identify the minimum take-up rate for the solution to be useful.
The researchers find that uptake of digital solutions only starts adding significant value (by taking work off manual contact tracers) at take-up levels above 60 per cent.
Demonstrating Value
Given the need for high uptake, the researchers find that building, and maintaining social licence for the use of digital tools is critical. Governments need to demonstrate that the value to the user is high and that privacy and security risks are low.
Because users have limited ability to judge the value of contact tracing tools, high trust is needed to achieve high take-up levels. The authors suggest that governments committing to an impact evaluation that will allow citizens to judge the impact of a tool will increase trust as well as take-up.
“We hope this working paper offers useful information and guidance for policymakers who are required to make high stakes decisions about digital contact tracing options both in the context of COVID-19 and beyond,” says Vaithianathan.
“Digital Contact Tracing for COVID-19: A Primer for Policymakers” was published as a working paper by the Centre for Social Data Analytics (Auckland University of Technology) and the Institute for Social Science Research (The University of Queensland) on 2 June 2020.
The authors of the working paper are:
- Rhema Vaithianathan, Centre for Social Data Analytics, Auckland University of Technology and Institute for Social Science Research, The University of Queensland
- Matthew Ryan, School of Economics, Auckland University of Technology
- Nina Anchugina, Centre for Social Data Analytics, Auckland University of Technology
- Linda Selvey, School of Public Health, The University of Queensland
- Tim Dare, Department of Philosophy, The University of Auckland; and
- Anna Brown, Toi Āria, Design for Public Good, Massey University
