New app for Android and Iphone reminds users when to get vaccinated

(Screen shot of ImmunizeCA app)

Just in time to track the recent Measles outbreak, a free app called ImmunizeCA was released for iOS and Android phones.

The app tracks cases of outbreak and will notify you if there are cases nearby. It also has the ability to keep track of vaccination records and will tell you if you need to get vaccinated soon, or are overdue.

Created in cooperation with the Canadian Public Health Association, the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, and Immunize Canada, the app is an update to the paper card vaccination record that was carried around in a wallet.

Twenty-five-year-old Sephora manager, Samara Eunson thinks the app is a good idea and will be downloading it.

Eunson does not currently have a personal record of her vaccinations. She leaves it up to her doctor.

“My doctor has a record of it, I assume. I just do what he tells me to,” says Eunson.

Saying that the disease outbreak alerts seem the most useful to her, Eunson says vaccination tracking seems like a good idea too.

Ruth Bittner, a mother of three, says that the disease tracking part of the app is a little scary, but she thinks it would be useful for young moms.

“If you’re a young mother and there’s a million things on your mind, it would be nice to have a vaccination reminder,” says Bittner.

Bittner will not be downloading the app now as her children are fully grown but agrees that it’s a good way to keep track of vaccinations.  Bittner says she used to keep track of her kids’ vaccinations using their baby books, listing the important ones as tetanus, hepatitis, and mumps and measles.

Freya Martin, a nurse at Saint Boniface General Hospital says to avoid getting measles, steer clear of people who have a cough or sneeze and practice effective hand washing techniques. Martin says people should not share food or beverages with others.

Martin says, “Becoming vaccinated makes it highly probable that you are immune to the virus. The best way to protect yourself from acquiring measles is to get the MMR vaccine.”

More details about vaccines and viruses are included in the app. ImmunizeCA can be downloaded from GooglePlay and Itunes.