Red Cross Needs Test Pilots for First Aid App

NEWS RELEASE

4 June 2014

Red Cross Needs Test Pilots for First Aid App

New Zealand Red Cross is looking for teenage test pilots to help improve its new first aid and disaster preparedness app for smartphones and tablets, before its official launch in July.

“We want to make sure our app is as good as possible, and who better to test it than tech savvy teenagers?” says Graham Wrigley, national education and training manager.

“We want to test the app on as many different devices, and in as many different circumstances as possible. We want to explore ways of sharing the app and testing the notification function – our test pilots will receive mission update notifications, and potentially this could be used by Red Cross as a way to engage communities during emergencies in the future.”

The test pilot programme has been designed to be easily incorporated into technology or health lessons for year 9 to 10 students, and is easy to complete online. It also has potential to improve schools’ preparedness as students use the interactive app to learn about giving first aid and planning for emergencies.

“For many students this will be their first contact with Red Cross and their first experience of volunteering,” Mr Wrigley says. “It shows how important the tradition of volunteering is to our work, and how that tradition is evolving and being carried forward to meet modern needs.”

Of course you don’t have to be a teenager to evaluate the app, anyone can be a test pilot – all you need to do is register online and leave your feedback.

To participate in the test pilot programme go to www.redcross.org.nz/first-aid-app/ @NZRedCross facebook.com/newzealandredcross

ENDS

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