Web performance and cybersecurity vendor Akamai Technologies announced this week that it has developed a tool, built using Salesforce technology, to help scale online distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.  

Vaccine Edge is built on Salesforce's Vaccine Cloud to help enhance the registration and signup process when websites are strained from high demand.  

"Citizens need accurate, up-to-the-minute information about vaccination eligibility and the logistics of booking an appointment,” said Mani Sundaram, Akamai's chief information officer, in a statement.

"Vaccination registration websites must make this all happen – and handle sudden spikes in traffic," Sundaram continued.

"Vaccine Edge helps our customers provide a reliable user experience without creating more complexity for their IT teams."  

WHY IT MATTERS  

The COVID-19 vaccine rollout has been something of a logistical nightmare, with would-be recipients facing glitches and crashes when they try to book through overloaded websites.  

To address this problem, Akamai says its new Vaccine Edge tool is designed to power fast load times regardless of the number of users registering simultaneously. When loads are too high, the company says, the technology passes users to a waiting room and allows them to maintain their location in the queue.  

It is also built with denial-of-service protection to help block bad actors who try to overwhelm sites with targeted requests, as well as HTTPS support and a web application firewall.   

The tool is currently available to state and local governments in the United States and Canada, as well as major retailers, pharmacies, clinics and hospitals.  

THE LARGER TREND  

Several major software companies have ramped up support of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, especially when it comes to scheduling appointments.

Earlier this month, Microsoft released a new vaccine management platform after technical issues had hampered its initial offering, leading to high-profile complaints.  

The day before, Google Cloud revealed its role in the vaccination efforts of five states, with more expansion planned in the future.  

ON THE RECORD  

"For most vaccine recipients, the first step in protecting themselves is scheduling an online appointment," said Salesforce Vaccine Cloud General Manager Meredith Flynn-Ripley.  

"Akamai’s Vaccine Edge solution can help provide patients with an efficient, effective, and equitable experience integrated with Salesforce," Flynn-Ripley added.

Kat Jercich is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Twitter: @kjercich
Email: kjercich@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.