Google has developed a specialized tablet made to assist aid workers in Sierra Leone with easily tracking the vitals of patients afflicted with Ebola.

The device, which is actually the Sony Xperia tablet wrapped in a protective casing, can be used with gloves and endure the harsh weather conditions in the area. Moreover, the case’s round corners eliminate any risk of piercing the protective clothing used by aid workers.

As The Telegraph reports:

It was designed after a Medecins Sans Frontieres doctor working in the organization’s treatment centre told his colleague in London he was being forced to shout patient details over a fence from inside the protective zone where medics must be fully covered to avoid catching the deadly disease, since even passing a piece of paper to the outside could risk transmitting it.

Medecins Sans Frontieres’ technology advisor, Ivan Gayton, reached out to Google’s Crisis Response team for help, after which the company designed the device and has since sent 8 of the tablets for use in Sierra Leone.

Ebola is still a very real problem in several African countries, and this is yet another example how modern technology can be leveraged to play a role in solving even basic problems in treating the disease…