Remote monitoring company Datos has teamed up with Kaiser Permanente's venture arm to develop a new self-service COVID-19 workforce tracking platform called Sidney Navigator. 

The tool was designed to help employers keep track of their staff's population COVID-19 status. It can help track employees' symptoms, illnesses and vaccination records. The companies said the platform was created to flexibly fit into different workflows and organizational systems. 

"Unlike other remote patient monitoring (RPM) systems that incorporate pre-built workflows, we have no limitations on what can be monitored or automated," said Uri Bettesh, CEO and founder of Datos Health.

"Our initial goal was to keep the workplace and campus populations safe. Now, the platform not only monitors health in relation to COVID, but also helps employers manage the status of each employee regarding vaccine administration and testing."

WHY IT MATTERS

COVID-19 continues to rapidly spread across the U.S. population. Fueled by the Omicron strain of the virus, January 2022 saw the highest rates of COVID-19 since the pandemic began two years ago. The CDC reports more than 72 million reported COVID-19 cases in the last 30 days. Since the pandemic began, there have been more than 870,000 COVID-19 related deaths.

Currently, 80.5% of individuals over the age of 5 have at least one vaccination. The CDC reports that hospitalizations are 16 times higher in unvaccinated adults than those who are vaccinated.

THE LARGER TREND 

When to return to work and school after the pandemic has been a major question for employers. Over the last year, digital tools focused on COVID-19 workforce wellbeing have emerged. In April, direct-to-employer digital health company Eden Health announced a new COVID-19 workplace offering, which included an opt-in vaccine record-sharing feature.

Boston-based startup Buoy Health added a new employer-facing vaccination tool. It was designed to help gauge employees' interest in getting vaccinated and report if they have been vaccinated. It also included educational strategies around vaccines.

In March 2021, Amazon got an FDA emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 test with at-home sample collection, which was intended to be part of the company's employee screening program.