Call to assess role of mobile technology in health
With more than 70 percent of the world's five billion cellphone users living in low- and middle-income countries, mobile technology is seen as offering the potential to improve healthcare for the poor. The first African mobile health summit held in Cape Town, South Africa, from June 6 to 9 saw the release of the second global survey by the World Health Organisation (WHO) assessing this emerging field, known as "mHealth".
The WHO survey showed that eight of 10 countries are using mobile phones to support health services. The most frequently reported initiatives were call centres, toll-free phone services, systems for managing emergencies and disasters, and telemedicine interventions. Read on.
