Welcome To CareBridge!

We believe that access to basic healthcare is a fundamental human right, not a privilege. But for so many, that's not the reality. It's a staggering thought that half the world's population lacks quality care, 100 million are pushed into poverty by health costs, and 2 billion people with visual impairments face accessibility barriers every day. This is why Sarah Zhou founded CareBridge. We're a youth-led initiative, and we're tackling these gaps head-on using AI and community action, driven by the simple idea that care should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their condition.

Sarah Zhou's Profile Picture

About Sarah Zhou

CareBridge is founded and led by Sarah Zhou, a student at the Castilleja School (Palo Alto, CA). You can learn more about her on her LinkedIn profile. She's passionate about using her coding skills for social good and believes strongly in AI's potential to build a more equitable healthcare future. This passion led her to found the "AI for Good Causes" club at her school, where she is also an active member of multiple STEM and engineering clubs.

Beyond her commitment to AI and STEM, Sarah enjoys creative writing, has been playing classical piano since age 7 and plays volleyball for both her school's varsity team and volleyball clubs.

The CareBridge App

Demo & GitHub Project

The CareBridge app is a tangible demonstration of our mission. Built by Sarah Zhou, this AI-powered Android application is engineered to equip underrepresented communities with essential tools and information for accessing basic healthcare. You can watch a 3.5-minute demo video here or explore the complete open-source code on GitHub. Key app functions include:

  • An intelligent "Doctor Bot," powered by AI, that offers a preliminary diagnostic chat.
  • A library of speech-to-text enabled medical advice cards for easy listening.
  • A built-in web browser pre-loaded with three online pharmacy options.
  • A specially customized map, designed for accessibility, to help visually impaired users locate nearby healthcare facilities.

Technologies Behind CareBridge

To power these features, the CareBridge app is built on a robust stack of modern APIs and libraries:

  • Android SDK: Provides the core foundation, used for building the UI with Material Design, managing map and web views, enabling speech recognition, and utilizing view binding.
  • Third-Party Libraries: Integrates key libraries including Volley and Retrofit for network requests, Dagger for dependency injection, and Picasso for efficient image loading.
  • Google Cloud Dialogflow ES API: Serves as the connector to a Large Language Model (like Gemini or ChatGPT) that drives the intelligent "Doctor Bot" functionality.
  • Google Maps Places API: Feeds the map feature, enabling real-time searches for nearby care providers relevant to the user's current location.

Data Flow Diagrams

The following diagrams illustrate the application's architecture and user flow for each core function:

1) Chat with Doctor Bot

Chat flow diagram

2) Medical Advice Cards

Medical Advice Cards

3) Online Pharmacy

Online Pharmacy

4) Nearby Care Providers

Nearby Care Providers

CareBridge Beyond the App

Our commitment to health equity goes beyond just digital tools. While the app is a core part of our mission, we recognize that technology alone isn't the solution. CareBridge is also making an impact through the following community-focused channels:

Community Outreach & Partnerships

Help us build a healthier, more equitable future:

  • Local Health Workshops: We host free educational health sessions in collaboration with local schools and community centers.
  • NGO Collaborations: We partner with established healthcare organizations to fundraise directly for patients in underserved regions.
  • Multilingual Resources: We create and distribute health guides in multiple languages, specifically to support populations with limited digital connectivity.

Get Involved

You can be a part of our movement for healthcare equity:

  • Volunteer Opportunities: We are always looking for help with app localization, community outreach efforts, and new content creation.
  • Accessibility Advocacy: We work alongside disability rights organizations to champion and improve accessibility in physical healthcare spaces.