The Horizon School Division is relying on a piece of personal technology that almost everyone carries to support its efforts in communication and contact tracing during the pandemic. The Division’s Information Technologists have come up with a digital check-in using cell phones and mobile devices. 

As part of contact tracing efforts, the SHA and the government has made requirements for check-ins at public locations such as restaurants. The same measure applies to schools in case of a need to contact individuals or trace the potential spread of the virus. The new measure in Horizon Schools makes check-in and tracing centralized and efficient. Director of Education Kevin Garinger explains.

“We’ve created an access screening tool for COVID-19 that is ready for guests or visitors to use on their mobile devices. If they come to the school and they don’t have a device, then they can simply go into the schools, and the school secretary can add their information right into the program.” 

Garinger explains that visitors should call the school to set up an appointment or announce their arrival. At that point, visitors can use a QR code, a visual prompt installed on virtually every device, to activate the Division’s screening program. Rather than signing in using a pen and paper, a standard at many businesses, guests can quickly enter the required screening information into their phones. That data is stored at a centralized location at the Division Office in the event the SHA receives an alert about a particular school. 

There have been recent isolated cases of COVID-19 within Horizon schools, and the SHA has called upon schools to provide contact information to support tracing.

“This is just another tool that allows us to ensure that we have that information readily accessible,” notes Garinger, “It’s a very simple process. You just use your camera on the QR code image, and the device will bring up the tool to enter your information quickly and accurately.”

The information is secured by the school division, but it is made available to the Saskatchewan Health Authority and its authorized teams on a moment’s notice. 

“It’s much easier than the paper and pen process we had been using and it’s going to keep our buildings safer for our students, staff, and families. It’s critical to have that information available to our health partners in case there is contact racing that might have to occur.” The same process is used to track itinerant staff members who attend Horizon schools. 

Garinger does encourage parents or visitors to call ahead to the school to make an appointment for entrance simply to limit and streamline outside traffic in the schools. The school will send the attendee a message with the link to the screening tool to be filled out ahead of time. The information is confirmed once the guest arrives at the school.

The screening app is a local initiative that owes much to the work of central staff members Lance Hiltz, Ken Sogge, and Justin Arendt, explains Garinger. A similar idea was in use in the Prairie Spirit School Division. Garinger and the Horizon School Division Technical Service Staff refined the original platform by adding the QR code and making the tool specific to the Horizon Division. The system went into place on March 1.