Mobile phones are now one of the greatest tools for alleviating the world's health problems, and hold great potential for achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), say industry players.
Kulsoom Ally, corporate social investment manager for Nokia MEA, says mobile access has fundamentally changed healthcare in developing nations, mainly by increasing connectivity to healthcare providers and speeding up the delivery of care.
“Traditional mobile telephony features such as text messaging, calling, imaging - without value-added services or features - are being used all over the world,” says Ally. “Building on these to provide dedicated health services creates a wealth of options for increasing the reach of healthcare services and making them more effective, from a cost and impact point of view.“
According to Nokia, pressing health challenges include the global shortage of 4.3 million healthcare workers*, and the lack of accurate and timely information related to disease outbreaks and preventive healthcare activities**.
“Accurate and speedy access to health data is critical for good healthcare service provision,” says Ally. “Mobile phones have enabled better practices in health data collection, and have cut down the time needed for research.”
Konstantinos Tzingakis, head of innovations and partnering at Ericsson, agrees that mobile connectivity has greatly enhanced access to information and professional opinion, as well as the time it takes for healthcare to be made available.
“Previously, a person had to walk for days to get a basic check-up or medical opinion. Now health workers can use technology to interact with professionals on the other end.”
A big advantage of mobile is that lots of data can be gathered quickly and easily. So a doctor or social worker can create and distribute a questionnaire via mobile technology, and use it to filter and analyse information, explains Tzingakis.
This ability to capture large amounts of health-related information in real-time is significant, he says, as health professionals can flag which cases need immediate attention. “Never underestimate the power of being able to connect to someone who knows what they're talking about,” he notes.
Stumbling blocks
Aggrey Rantloane, public sector lead at Cisco SA, says mobile network roll-out across the country means connectivity is becoming available where it's needed most. “Now access for health information is at the fingertips of any cellphone user; be it where the nearest hospital is or when a patient should return to a healthcare facility for their next check-up or dose of TB medication.”
However, Rantloane adds that roll-out of these networks has been slow, and doesn't cover a great deal of Africa. He says while the adoption of mobile technologies will increase over time as more healthcare-related applications are deployed, there is a strong dependency on access to bandwidth.
“The cost of the bandwidth in these areas is still too high and limits the adoption of the network and associated technologies. Broadband proliferation will be critical to how quick, how far and how wide healthcare remote diagnostic tools, patient records, and doctor scripts can reach patients, especially in rural areas,” he points out.
In addition, questions of data security and privacy in mobile health remain unresolved, notes Ally. “Ensuring quality and professionalism in the medical services provided is critical for the success of mobile health initiatives.”
Tzingakis adds that issues surrounding architecture and quality of service, as well as interoperability and standardisation among technologies and systems prove challenging. “The health industry as a whole is very complex. You've got pharmaceutical companies, clinics, doctors, government, and equipment vendors all playing different roles that pull the industry together.”
Ally agrees that the regulation of healthcare services, such as the need for clearance and compliance with national health boards and standards organisations, still needs serious attention.
“Ultimately, the treatment of health conditions will still remain with the trained professionals - it is important to recognise and accept the limitations of mobile health, which is not the panacea for global healthcare, but can be very important in changing the healthcare industry for the better.”
Meeting global goals
One such area of change involves the MDGs for health, with a recent report showing increased mobile communication in rural areas has improved the quality and availability of health and education services.
The study was conducted by Ericsson, The Earth Institute, and Millennium Promise, to explore the impact of connectivity on development goals in Africa. It revealed access to mobile communication could save at least 6 000 lives per year in the African countries studied, including Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and Tanzania.
In the statement, Ericsson's head of sustainability, Elaine Weidman Grunewald, said the report reveals the potential for using and expanding mobile technology in other African and developing countries.
“We believe that a large majority of the approximately 57 million people living in rural areas in these four countries could benefit from mobile communications with reasonable levels of investment in additional telecommunications infrastructure."
Never underestimate the power of being able to connect to someone who knows what they're talking about.
Konstantinos Tzingakis, head of innovations and partnering, Ericsson
A joint initiative was rolled out in 2007 by Ericsson, MTN, Zain and Sony Ericsson to provide connectivity to the Millennium Villages Project (MVP).
A public-private partnership between the Earth Institute, Millennium Promise, Ericsson and the United Nations Development Programme has also provided mobile and Internet communications to more than a half million people in 10 African countries where the MVP is working. According to the collaboration, by the end of 2009, 83% of the villages had mobile communication capabilities.
Of the five billion mobile subscriptions worldwide, 450 million are in Africa, according to the partnership, representing some 43% of the African population. In sub-Saharan Africa, the penetration is 42%, representing 297 million. By 2013, analysts estimate mobile penetration in this region will increase to 65%.
"The mobile phone is the most powerful technology for ending poverty in the world today," said professor Jeffrey Sachs, director of Columbia University's Earth Institute, in a related release.
The partnership adds that villages may not have running water or even electricity, but in most cases at least one person has access to a mobile phone. Soon, 90% of the world's population will be within the coverage of wireless networks.
“Mobile technologies will become more and more prominent in healthcare and will become an increasingly natural and logical tool for the provision of more effective and better quality services,” says Ally.
“It is likely we will stop thinking of 'm-health' services as separate or especially different from other healthcare services, as mobile technology becomes increasingly entrenched in the day to day technological experience of people.”
* As cited in a 2006 World Health Organisation 'Working together for health' report.
** According to the UN Foundation and Vodafone 'mHealth for development 2009' report.
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