What does didRequest do in this component?

const AuthInit: FC<WithChildren> = ({children}) => {
 const {auth, logout, setCurrentUser} = useAuth()
 const didRequest = useRef(false)
 const [showSplashScreen, setShowSplashScreen] = useState(true)
 // We should request user by authToken (IN OUR EXAMPLE IT'S API_TOKEN) before rendering the application
 useEffect(() => {
 const requestUser = async (apiToken: string) => {
 try {
 if (!didRequest.current) {
 const {data} = await getUserByToken(apiToken)
 if (data) {
 setCurrentUser(data)
 }
 }
 } catch (error) {
 console.error(error)
 if (!didRequest.current) {
 logout()
 }
 } finally {
 setShowSplashScreen(false)
 }
 return () => (didRequest.current = true)
 }
 if (auth && auth.api_token) {
 requestUser(auth.api_token)
 } else {
 logout()
 setShowSplashScreen(false)
 }
 // eslint-disable-next-line
 }, [])
 return showSplashScreen ? <LayoutSplashScreen /> : <>{children}</>
}