Information and communication technologies and health in low income countries: the potential and the constraints
01 Jan 2001-Bulletin of The World Health Organization (World Health Organization)-Vol. 79, Iss: 9, pp 850-855
TL;DR: The potential offered by technological progress in the information and communication technologies (ICTs) industries for the health sector in developing countries is outlined, some examples of positive experiences in India are presented, and the difficulties in achieving this potential are considered.
Abstract: This paper outlines the potential offered by technological progress in the information and communication technologies (ICTs) industries for the health sector in developing countries, presents some examples of positive experiences in India, and considers the difficulties in achieving this potential. The development of ICTs can bring about improvements in health in developing countries in at least three ways: as an instrument for continuing education they enable health workers to be informed of and trained in advances in knowledge; they can improve the delivery of health and disaster management services to poor and remote locations; and they can increase the transparency and efficiency of governance, which should, in turn, improve the availability and delivery of publicly provided health services. These potential benefits of ICTs do not necessarily require all the final beneficiaries to be reached directly, thus the cost of a given quantum of effect is reduced. Some current experiments in India, such as the use of Personal Digital Assistants by rural health workers in Rajasthan, the disaster management project in Maharashtra and the computerized village offices in Andhra Pradesh and Pondicherry, suggest creative ways of using ICTs to improve the health conditions of local people. However, the basic difficulties encountered in using ICTs for such purposes are: an inadequate physical infrastructure; insufficient access by the majority of the population to the hardware; and a lack of the requisite skills for using them. We highlight the substantial cost involved in providing wider access, and the problem of resource allocation in poor countries where basic infrastructure for health and education is still lacking. Educating health professionals in the possible uses of ICTs, and providing them with access and "connectivity", would in turn spread the benefits to a much wider set of final beneficiaries and might help reduce the digital divide.
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Journal Article•
TL;DR: It is concluded that no ICTs will work in a resource-poor setting unless livelihood-based approach is intervened and ICT's play a marginal role in access to health information due to the health vulnerabilities and limited information resources of the poor.
Abstract: This paper explores the domain of literature on information systems or electronic health (e-health) in the rural healthcare in developing countries. The main aim of this paper is to contribute to the development informatics community literature by bridging a knowledge gap. Based on secondary data, the study analyses the key policy debates and presents previous research finding. It shows that ICTs play a marginal role in access to health information due to the health vulnerabilities and limited information resources of the poor. This paper concludes that no ICTs will work in a resource-poor setting unless livelihood-based approach is intervened.
22 citations
TL;DR: A framework based on the theories by two influential development economists—Schumacher and Sen is developed, which includes features like the low-cost technology, easy implementation and operability, usefulness to local people, and scope for creative appropriation that can be used by future studies.
Abstract: Mobile payment technology has aided in socio-economic development through financial inclusion and protective security during crises. However, there is a gap in understanding whether this technology has the potential for sustainable development that encompasses individual emancipation and environmental growth beyond social and economic change. To evaluate mobile payments role in sustainable human-centric development, we develop a framework based on the theories by two influential development economists—Schumacher and Sen (Schumacher 2011; Sen 2001). The framework includes features like the low-cost technology, easy implementation and operability, usefulness to local people, and scope for creative appropriation. We conducted an in-depth field study through interviews with merchants and consumers to evaluate the framework. We triangulate our findings with publicly available secondary survey data. Our findings indicate that along with the features like low-cost, easy installation and operability, users reported that the mobile payment technology, unlike cash transactions, can also afford creative uses such as reflection on past expenses. The paper contributes to the field of ICT4D with the framework that can be used by future studies. The investigation reveals developmental implications towards the need for greater inclusion of local small-scale vendors.
22 citations
TL;DR: There is worldwide consensus on the need for IS use to protect the health workforce; however, IS implementation is a resource-intensive undertaking; regardless of how carefully designed the software, contextual factors and the mechanisms adopted to address these are critical to mitigate threats and achieve outcomes of interest to all parties.
Abstract: Although information systems (IS) have been extensively applied in the health sector worldwide, few initiatives have addressed the health and safety of health workers, a group acknowledged to be at high risk of injury and illness, as well as in great shortage globally, particularly in low and middle-income countries
21 citations
Cites background from "Information and communication techn..."
...in LMICs [20-23] repeatedly emphasize the need to better understand how to best introduce health IS for decision-making in these settings – which is of particular relevance given the disproportionately greater global disease burden that occurs here....
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TL;DR: In this article, the invisible hand of the market rather than the public good is shaping technological advancement, and the authors critically examine how to help poor people especially of the developing countries choose and use ICT; to adapt, develop, improve it, and to be able to manage it over time.
Abstract: Despite rapid and dramatic technological change in the 1990s, the World inequality i.e. absolute gaps in per capital income between developed and developing countries increased. The number of people living in dollar poverty i.e. who consume less than a dollar a day, has remained constant at 1.2 billion. This paper critically examines how to help poor people especially of the developing countries (e.g. Nigeria) choose and use ICT; to adapt, develop, improve it, and to be able to manage it over time. The invisible hand of the market rather than the public good is shaping technological advancement. To reclaim it for public good and harness ICT for poverty reduction then poor countries of the world must integrate ICT into the economic and social fabric of their nations by broadening access to ICT, training the population to better tap into the immense potential of ICT and making the relevant policy adjustments in order to create the milieu in which individuals and investors will be able to benefit.
21 citations
Cites background from "Information and communication techn..."
...In addition to the economic value to be derived from ICT, experts (cf Chandrasekhar and Ghosh, 2001; Cecchini and Scott, 2003, Kanungo, 2004); point to increased participation in governance, capacity building, e-learning, e-government, environmental management, enhancing advocacy programmes and…...
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31 Oct 2011
TL;DR: SARA, based on an Enterprise Architecture (EA) approach, represents a portfolio of practices, tools, and methods that can be easily and appropriately adapted and applied in the design phase of health information system development, and early efforts to develop this portfolio are presented.
Abstract: Low-income countries with their funding and implementing partners are increasingly recognizing health information systems (HIS) as an essential way to strengthen and support health systems. There is tremendous potential for innovations in information and communication technologies to assist health managers, health workers, and patients. Yet individual technologies and software applications are often developed without specifying how they will interact and communicate with existing and future information systems. Furthermore, they are developed without giving adequate attention to the needs the information system is supposed to address, resulting in software applications that do not effectively meet user needs. There is a lack of documented systematic methodology for gathering and documenting requirements for developing HIS. This article introduces a systematic, architected, and rational approach (SARA) for the design and development of health information systems. SARA, based on an Enterprise Architecture (EA) approach, represents a portfolio of practices, tools, and methods that can be easily and appropriately adapted and applied in the design phase of health information system development. This article will present early efforts to develop this portfolio including lessons learned from applying SARA in Tanzania.
20 citations
Cites background from "Information and communication techn..."
...This article will present early efforts to develop this portfolio including lessons learned from applying SARA in Tanzania....
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References
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Book•
01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: The Public Report of Basic Education in India presents a comprehensive evaluation of the educational system in India with an extensive survey of 200 villages in five states.
Abstract: The Public Report of Basic Education in India presents a comprehensive evaluation of the educational system in India. Based on an extensive survey of 200 villages in five states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Rajasthan, the report gives a voice to thousands of parents, teachers, and children.
439 citations
TL;DR: This is a fascinating collection of essays exploring "why some people are healthy and others not," from a variety of disciplines and theoretical perspectives that challenges the widespread belief that health care is the most important determinant of health and argues for a more comprehensive and coherent understanding of the determinants of health.
Abstract: This is a fascinating collection of essays exploring \"why some people are healthy and others not,\" from a variety of disciplines and theoretical perspectives. It represents the efforts of a group of researchers from diverse backgrounds who have met intermittently over the last five years as part of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. Their common focus was to understand the determinants of a population's health. The book's point of departure is that \"factors in the social environment, external to the health care system, exert a major and potentially modifiable influence on the health of populations through biological channels that are just now beginning to be understood.\" (p. 23) Via this observation, the volume challenges the widespread belief that health care is the most important determinant of health and argues for a more comprehensive and coherent understanding of the determinants of health. This thesis is lucidly presented in the introductory chapter. Evans brings together findings from a number of studies that provoke fundamental questions about our understanding of health.
359 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, composite solar cells of improved efficiency comprise two cells of different characteristics arranged in optical series but electrically insulated from each other, each cell is of larger crystal grain size than its substrate, which grain size is achieved by growing the cell semiconductor on a molten intermediate rheotaxy layer of a suitable semi-conductor which solidifies at a temperature below the melting temperature of the solar cell.
Abstract: Composite solar cells of improved efficiency comprise two cells of different characteristics arranged in optical series but electrically insulated from each other. Preferably, each cell is of larger crystal grain size than its substrate, which grain size is achieved by growing the cell semi-conductor on a molten intermediate rheotaxy layer of a suitable semi-conductor which solidifies at a temperature below the melting temperature of the solar cell semi-conductor. The substrate and the intermediate rheotaxy layer of the overlying cell are transparent to that fraction of sunlight which is utilized by the underlying cell. Various configurations of overlying and underlying cells are disclosed.
299 citations
Book•
01 Jan 2000
TL;DR: In this paper, the successful use of information and communication technology (ICT) in rural development is discussed, and sixteen case studies are presented, which spell out the various applications of ICT that have made a difference in the delivery of services or products in rural India.
Abstract: This book documents the successful use of information and communication technology (ICT) in rural development. The book begins with an introductory chapter that traces the history of ICT use in rural India, examines some of the problems that have afflicted the implementation of rural development programmes, at the same time showing how ICT applications could help overcome them, assesses the early efforts in ICT use, and proposes a scheme by which to classify ICT applications. Written by administrators who lead projects in their areas, sixteen case studies follow, which spell out the various applications of ICT that have made a difference in the delivery of services or products in rural India. Among the services covered are health care, milk distribution, disaster management, postal services, telephones, and services for the disabled. These applications of ICT cover the use of simple and inexpensive technologies at one end, and sophisticated satellite-based communication at the other. An important collection that delineates the main elements of a strategy that can be used by governmental agencies to derive maximum developmental impact from investments in ICT
85 citations