Released 01/12/2020
The Australian National University is rolling out the Check In CBR app across campus as part of adapting to a new COVID-safe environment.
Check In CBR, developed by ACT Health and launched in September, is a free, easy and secure solution for Canberra venues to meet their requirements of collecting patron contact details under the Public Health Directions.
Minister for Health Rachel Stephen-Smith said ACT Health has been working closely with the ANU to set-up Check In CBR across its campus, creating 685 individual QR codes for venues including lecture theatres, residential accommodation and commercial spaces.
“The ANU is a very large campus with many teachers, students and staff moving about every day. The campus has great COVID safety measures in place but there is always risk that a positive case may be detected.
“With the whole campus using the CBR Check In app, our disease detectives will be able to quickly and effectively contact trace any case that may be linked to the university. This will help to keep staff, students and our entire community safe.
“Every single one of us has a role to play in our response to COVID-19 and it is great to see the ANU getting on board with this app as we move towards a new normal,” said Minister Stephen-Smith.
Since launching in early September, more than 2,700 venues have been registered with Check In CBR and the app has been downloaded more than 80,000 times. With the support of ACT Health, Tasmania and the Northern Territory have recently implemented rebranded versions of the platform.
Stage 4 of Canberra’s Recovery Plan comes into effect at 9am on Wednesday 2 December. Businesses and venues are required to use the Check In CBR app if they wish to have one person per two square metres in their indoor spaces.
Venues have until Wednesday, 16 December 2020 to register to meet this requirement.
Quotes attributable to Professor Tracy Smart, Public Health Lead, ANU COVID Response Office:
“Bringing students and staff safely back to our campus in July was a massive task that required careful and thorough planning. We recognised the need to put mechanisms in place to help with contact tracing. While we initially asked our staff and students to keep a diary of their movements, we recognised that using an app would be far more effective.
“The Check In CBR app was perfect for our needs. It is simple and quick to use, and is now popping up all over Canberra.
“It’s also a safe and secure system that protects users’ privacy.
“As well as really assisting ACT Health with contact tracing if we were to get a positive case here on campus, it also is a constant reminder for our people to be COVID-safe. It’s easy to forget that COVID-19 is still a threat in a nice safe place like Canberra where the risk is very low but we can't let our guard down completely.
“Use of the Check In CBR app to check into every floor of every building at ANU, including our commercial businesses, is just another way of living and thriving in our COVID World.”
- Statement ends -
Rachel Stephen-Smith, MLA | Media Releases