I've been interested in the Kinsa heat maps since I heard about them back in March. In fact, I had a different (but similar) blog post in mind a while back. Interesting back in March, but it also looked like the thermometers were not so widely available as they are now.
I think it's fascinating to watch how Kinsa tracks the data and can predict a surge in real time before the health care system and the CDC can do the testing, collect, analyze and report the data. They are always one step behind. Think of the power these Kinsa heat maps offer in terms of being able to marshal resources and prepare for the Covid hot spots. This technology allows us to see it coming.
Initially, I had concerns about privacy, but when I heard the maker talk about why he created the company, I felt much better -- They were not trying to get rich, but had a true public health interest in providing the technology and collecting the data to predict and respond to outbreaks. In short, they wanted to use it for the public good.
Kinsa’s data has also proved the effectiveness of social distancing and is now pinpointing new spikes around the country.
After states shut down their economies, [Kinsa CEO Inder] Singh says Kinsa data noticed declining levels of fever within three to seven days due to social distancing. Suddenly, the Kinsa thermometer became one of the first real-time data sources at the beginning of the pandemic to prove social distancing was effective.
“This is the whole reason we started the company is to detect, predict and help respond to outbreaks,” [Singh] says. “And this is an opportunity for us to use the data to have a really massive public health impact.”
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