The app will alert Portuguese people about vaccines and tests that need to be done.

Next year, the Portuguese will have an app that will aggregate information on key areas of disease prevention, alert people to vaccines and screenings, book appointments and suggest nearby locations.

The Prevention4all app, an initiative coordinated by the Action Plan for Active and Healthy Ageing in coordination with the General Directorate of Health, will allow each citizen to enter the necessary data in their personal account so that, with the help of artificial intelligence, you can receive, for example, suggestions on the best exercise plan for your specific case.

Speaking to Lusa, the plan’s coordinator, Nuno Marques, explained that the app will add reliable information on issues such as promoting physical exercise, preventing bad habits such as tobacco and alcohol, and nutrition, as well as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, mental health, dementia, musculoskeletal diseases and vaccinations.

“If we want active participation of people, we must take other steps. In addition to the information itself, structure this information in such a way that people can immediately resolve their doubts,” he said, emphasizing that everything that will be available is reliable, since it will be published in coordination with the plan together with the DGS itself, also with the scientific societies in each of the areas in mind.

With the help of artificial intelligence, in addition to individual training plans, depending on the region where a person is located, the application will provide information about places where he can do it.

“This will increase people’s commitment and active participation in a process in which they should be involved, within the freedom that every individual has, but properly informed and prepared,” the person in charge said, rejecting that this meant removing responsibility from the system.

The app, which will be rolled out gradually next year (it won’t have all the features initially), will also notify people by age group about vaccinations they need to take, he said, providing a ‘link’ so they can make an appointment at a health centre.

Another option is to send alerts for specific population-based cancer screenings, allowing you to submit requests and specify the nearest available testing locations.

“Besides the fact that this will certainly help improve adherence to treatment, it will also improve people’s lives in terms of access to prevention,” said Nuno Marques, explaining that the information will then be transmitted to the Ministry of Health’s information systems “so that everything is recorded,” even if the person does not have a family doctor assigned to them.

When asked about data protection issues, he replied that they do not arise, since the user himself will provide his personal data if he so wishes.

“This is a platform designed for people, not for the system, which is a slightly different paradigm. All the data will be stored by a person,” he said, adding that the app will provide communication with health care workers.

The official also stressed that measures such as this app, which can be used by people over 18, “can have a big impact on health promotion and therefore prevention, as well as preventing situations that lead to addiction, identifying situations of the disease early, while they are treatable.”