To help people take better care of their health, Facebook has launched a new tool that provides reminders about various healthcare tests and screenings and offers connections to local providers of testing/screening services.

The tool aggregates screening guidelines from organizations such as the American Heart Association, the CDC, the American Cancer Society and the American College of Cardiology into simplified checklists. The checklists generate screening/testing reminders for individuals based on the age and sex submitted by the user. Screening recommendations come with a map of local service providers, along with a map of flu shot providers in the area.

Because the security of health data is an ongoing concern for many people, the Facebook tool is designed so that the only sharing feature is to promote use of the tool. No information about what services were recommended, what information was input or whether the person sharing the tool even used it at all can be shared. The tool is intended to be used for awareness and an information resource, not a means of collecting or using data. A spokesman for Facebook said that the platform will never have access to any results or other data created during interactions using the tool.