Information and communication technologies and health in low income countries: the potential and the constraints
C. P. Chandrasekhar,Jayati Ghosh +1 more
TLDR
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.read more
Citations
More filters
Book ChapterDOI
The Use of Information and Communication Technologies for Health Service Delivery in Namibia: Perceptions, Technology Choices, and Policy Implications for Sub-Saharan Africa
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the use of ICT for health service delivery (HSD) in Namibian context and identified key challenges and policy implications to enhance the uptake of ITC-based health services in Namibia.
Journal ArticleDOI
Resistance Factors to Rapid Response in Natural Disaster Scenarios
TL;DR: Disaster preparedness has improved in Australian EDs over the past two years in some areas, most notably equipment availability for PPE and decontamination.
Journal ArticleDOI
Impact of Demographic Factors on Technological Orientations of BOP Entrepreneurs in Ghana
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored relationship between technological orientations and demographics of bottom of the pyramid (BOP) entrepreneurs in Ghana and found some relationships between technology acceptance, connectivity to networks and entrepreneurial demographics.
Journal Article
Information and communication technology (ICT) and eHealth policy in Latin America and the Caribbean: a review of national policies and assessment of socioeconomic context
TL;DR: The countries that have developed a national ICT policy seem to be more likely to have a national eHealth policy in place, and governments need to make stronger efforts to raise awareness about existing and planned ICT and eHealth policies to facilitate ease of use and communication with their stakeholders.
References
More filters
Book
Public report on basic education in India
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.
Journal ArticleDOI
Why are Some People Healthy and Others Not? The Determinants of the Health of Populations.
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.
Journal ArticleDOI
Why Are Some People Healthy and Others Not? The Determinants of Health of Populations
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.
Book
Information and Communication Technology in Development: Cases from India
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.