Toronto City has an official COVID-19 information chatbot

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The city of Toronto recently introduced a COVID-19 information chatbot to help answer common questions about the virus and its effects on the residents and businesses in the area. It's also designed to answer queries on city services affected by the pandemic. It draws most of its answers from content already available on the city's website. And since the chatbot is new, it's still learning. If you get an answer that doesn't seem right to you, you can ask it again using different words. The chatbot is only available in English. The city government reminds users that the chatbots are for informational purposes and shouldn't be taken as medical advice. 

City staff continues to train the chatbot and update the information it can access. The chatbot also improves with each interaction. But if you can't find the information you need, you can also call 311 to get answers to your queries. The 311 service supports over 180 languages.

Source: City of Toronto

Poynter Institute's new WhatsApp chatbot helps debunk COVID-19 hoaxes

Here's one debunked hoax from Poynter's WhatsApp chatbot

Poynter Institute, a non-profit organization that supports journalism, recently introduced a new chatbot on WhatsApp to debunk thousands of hoaxes about COVID-19. The bot relies on information from over 100 independent fact-checkers in over 70 countries, making it the largest database to debunk falsehoods about the pandemic (at least according to Poynter). At the moment, it is only available in English, but support for languages like Spanish, Hindi, and Portuguese is in the works.

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Telus, Koodo offer two months of free wireless service to B.C. frontline healthcare workers

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Telus and flanker brand Koodo are helping out the frontline healthcare workers and operational staff at Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health Authority by offering them two months of free wireless service. The two B.C. facilities were chosen because they cater to areas in the province hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is part of Telus' Mobility for Good initiative, which gives youth coming out of foster care access to a phone and service plan.

Those who qualify from Vancouver Coastal Health include frontline staff members or physicians who are actively working on COVID-19 patient care units or those assigned to key COVID-19 response roles. Meanwhile, those from the Fraser Health Authority who qualify include staff who work in housekeeping, food services, and environmental departments. Telus claims the program has been extended to select hospitals and healthcare facilities in Quebec and Ontario, with Alberta to follow soon.

Source: MobileSyrup

Apple updates its COVID-19 screening app, includes symptoms and mask cleaning tips

A great example of technology at the service of the greater good, Apple has made updates to its COVID-19 screening app which now includes updated symptoms as well as tips on cleaning various protective masks. As part of Apple's outreach during the pandemic, the COVID-19 app helps users drill down on symptoms and then directs them to reach out to health providers or isolate as needed. It is helpful app in these stressful times and can help users better determine their status. As the pandemic progresses, more symptoms have become accepted.

According to the CDC, new symptoms that could be signs of COVID-19 include chills, shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, and loss of smell or taste. 

The COVID-19 app, which was developed in collaboration the CDC, FEMA and Coronavirus Task Force, is available as a free download on the App Store.

Source: Appleinsider