mHealth Knowledge
Permanent URI for this collection
mHealth Knowledge was a portal to hundreds of selected mHealth resources, arranged into eight categories: mHealth Alliance, Applications & Platforms, Communities of Practice, Capacity Building & Learning, Multimedia Content, Project Repositories, Tools & Guides, and Blogs & News. It also housed the mHealth Compendium archive (see below).
Browse
Browsing mHealth Knowledge by Subject "Evidence Research Reports"
Now showing 1 - 20 of 34
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- ItemAddressing Gender and Women's Empowerment in mHealth for MNCH: An Analytical Framework(2013)The proposed analytical framework for addressing gender and women s empowerment within mHealth and MNCH programs builds on a review of existing evidence and gaps a review of existing mHealth projects and consultations with experts at key events The framework is premised on the fact that addressing gender equity and women s empowerment is critical to successfully achieving health goals and that issues related to gender equality and women s empowerment are not yet fully understood in the context of mHealth The framework therefore proposes four domains of analysis based on mHealth intervention components The framework highlights the fact that women s voices and participation is central to their access and use of mobile phones and technology for better health Additionally women s empowerment and participation needs to be seen in a context while engaging men as well as other relevant gatekeepers and addressing social and cultural norms that inform and shape the gender relations behaviors and thus practices This holistic view is critical to achieve the health goals related to Millennium Development Goals MDGs 4 5 and 6 The framework is meant to serve As a tool to further examine understand and analyze gender related issues and implications within mHealth interventions including the unintended negative consequences of mHealth such as violence against women in order to address them by developing meaningful mHealth intervention strategies and approaches As a living framework which will be further informed by the evidence and analysis gathered henceforth The proposed framework may be used by practitioners including national governments and NGOs to further examine the issues on the ground by academics and researchers to undertake further research in this area by policy makers to examine gender sensitive mHealth and eHealth policies and by donors and other partners to support gender transformative mHealth interventions Why it helps with planning Proposes an analytical framework for addressing gender and women s empowerment within mHealth and MNCH
- ItemAfrican Strategies for Health (ASH) Project "Trends in Digital Health in Africa" Technical Brief(2016)Lessons from the African Strategies for Health Project Key findings from a consultation with experts working on digital health at the national regional and global levels The brief informed by work throughout the life of ASH outlines trends barriers and opportunities to scale digital health in Africa
- ItemApplying a framework for assessing the health system challenges to scaling up mHealth in South Africa(2012)Mobile phone technology has demonstrated the potential to improve health service delivery but there is little guidance to inform decisions about acquiring and implementing mHealth technology at scale in health systems Using the case of community based health services CBS in South Africa this article applies a framework to appraise the opportunities and challenges to effective implementation of mHealth at scale in health systems Why it helps with planning Provides a framework to assess the factors that enable facilitate as well as challenge mHealth implementation and scale up
- ItemCan Technology End Poverty?(2010)Kentaro Toyama published a forum in Boston Review titled Can Technology End Poverty He posits Many development experts promote information and communication technology ICT as a way to relieve global poverty They should pay more attention to the human beings who use it Technology no matter how well designed is only a magnifier of human intent and capacity It is not a substitute
- ItemA Development and Evaluation Process for mHealth Interventions: Examples From New ZealandThe authors established a process for the development and testing of mobile phone based health interventions that has been implemented in several mHealth interventions developed in New Zealand This process involves a series of steps conceptualization formative research to inform the development pretesting content pilot study pragmatic randomized controlled trial and further qualitative research to inform improvement or implementation Several themes underlie the entire process including the integrity of the underlying behavior change theory allowing for improvements on the basis of participant feedback and a focus on implementation from the start The strengths of this process are the involvement of the target audience in the development stages and the use of rigorous research methods to determine effectiveness The limitations include the time required and potentially a less formalized and randomized approach than some other processes This article aims to describe the steps and themes in the mHealth development process using the examples of a mobile phone video messaging smoking cessation intervention and a mobile phone multimedia messaging depression prevention intervention to stimulate discussion on these and other potential methods Why it helps with planning Describes the steps and themes involved in the development of an mHealth intervention with an emphasis on involving the end user and applying rigorous research techniques to assess effectiveness Links Abstract Full Text Available for Purchase POPLINE
- ItemFactors that promote or inhibit implementation of e-health systems: An explanatory systematic reviewA systematic review of the literature on the implementation of e health to identify 1 barriers and facilitators to e health implementation and 2 outstanding gaps in research on the subject
- ItemGender Digital Divide IndicatorsThis one page document provides a starting place for those looking to develop gender based information communication technology ICT indicators The document lists components of the Regentic Gender Digital Divide Indicators organized by topic Topics include decision making and policy content skills and connectivity The document is adapted from Table 3 on Page 38 of the article Women and Gender in ICT Statistics and Indicators for Development How it helps with planning Ideas for gender based ICT indicators
- ItemH_pe for mHealth: More â yâ or â oâ on the Horizon?(2013)In this letter the authors present the response of a group of researchers in the mHealth community to the recent calls for evidence issued by global health and funding agencies They support their conclusions through a summary of the numerous ongoing mHealth studies listed in the US federal clinical trial registry They identified 215 unique mHealth studies that were registered in the clinicaltrials gov database of which 81 8 n 176 studies used a classical randomized trial design and 40 new studies were added to the database between May and November 2012 alone Based on these results the authors posit that the field is entering a new era where a body of rigorous evaluation of mHealth strategies is rapidly accumulating They also suggest that mHealth interventions can be evaluated with the same rigor as other public healthstrategies attenuating some of the hype previously associated with mHealth Why it helps with planning Provides insights into how mHealth programs can be evaluated and assurance that the evidence base for mHealth is building
- ItemHealth on the Move: Can Mobile Phones Save Lives?(2013)This briefing focuses on how one of the greatest engines of innovation in the 21st century the mobile phone provides a high impact solution to save lives It identifies three aspects of mHealth that renders it such a potentially robust healthcare tool Reach The first is its capacity to leverage existing and quite basic phones to provide life saving information to people in difficult to reach rural areas Design The second is its capacity to tailor both the delivery and content of that information to the needs of poor illiterate and marginalised populations Scale The third is its capacity to operate at scale in a cost effective financially sustainable way The breakdown of the content in the policy briefing is as follows Part 1 examines the data on maternal and child health globally and in India Part 2 explores the role of mobile phones within the sphere of health communication highlighting mHealth as an educational tool Part 3 provides a brief overview of BBC Media Action s mHealth work in Bihar India Part 4 lays out the conceptual insights that work has yielded for reaching poor and marginalised populations Part 5 illustrates the integral role of scale in making such mHealth initiatives sustainable financially Part 6 reviews the state of the evidence on mHealth Part 7 draws conclusions arising from the analysis in parts 1 6 Why it helps with planning Case study and policy brief on how to leverage mobile phones to reach the hardest to access focusing on the topics of reach design and scale Walks through concept development solution design testing and implementation
- ItemInfluence of mHealth Interventions on Gender Relations in Developing Countries: A Systematic Literature Review(2013)Research has shown that mHealth initiatives or health programs enhanced by mobile phone technologies can foster women s empowerment Yet there is growing concern that mobile based programs geared towards women may exacerbate gender inequalities A systematic literature review was conducted to examine the empirical evidence of changes in men and women s interactions as a result of mHealth interventions The current literature suggests that mobile phone programs can influence gender relations in meaningfully positive ways by providing new modes for couple s health communication and cooperation and by enabling greater male participation in health areas typically targeted towards women MHealth initiatives also increased women s decision making social status and access to health resources However programmatic experiences by design may inadvertently reinforce the digital divide and perpetuate existing gender based power imbalances Domestic disputes and lack of spousal approval additionally hampered women s participation How it helps with planning Provides rationale for why it is important to explore gender dynamics in mHealth programs
- ItemInformation and Communications for Development 2012: Maximizing MobileThis report analyzes the growth and evolution of applications for mobile phones focusing on their use in agriculture health and financial services as well as their impact on employment and government It also explores the consequences for development of the emerging app economy summarizing current thinking and seeking to inform the debate on the use of mobile phones for development It s no longer about the phone itself but about how it is used and the content and applications that mobile phones open Why it helps with planning Overall this report explains the applicability of mobiles in development Chaper 1 provides data for concept development landscape analysis Chapter 3 pages 45 60 focuses on mHealth provides insights on mHealth players ecosystem business models and implementation lessons
- ItemInnovation and Entrepreneurship: Harnessing the Public Health Skill Set in a New Era of Health Reforms and Investment(2017)By Elham Hatef MD MPH Joshua M Sharfstein MD Alain B Labrique PhD The Context for Innovation and Entrepreneurship The implementation of the Affordable Care Act and major reforms of the health system have resulted in rapid proliferation of innovation driven start up companies in the health sector 1 These start ups typically focus on the application of new technologies to improve a narrow selection of health services or some aspect of patient self efficacy attempting to reduce the cost of services increase patient competence or improve health care delivery writ large It is time for the field of public health to engage with this industry and work to direct its energies to tackling major health challenges
- ItemLessons Learned: ICTs for Supply Chain Management in Low-Resource Settings(2013)A report and set of case studies on lessons learned from implementing information and communication technology ICT projects for supply chain management in low resource settings based on experience from Dimagi and VillageReach in a variety of engagements in Ghana Tanzania Malawi Uganda and Mozambique Why it helps with planning Examples of the mHealth planning process in action covering technology design and implementation lessons on the topics of program design training and support and scale up
- ItemLeveraging Mobile Technologies for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health: A Framework for EngagementThis paper lays out a strategic framework to help global health specialists implementers and policy makers working to achieve MDGs 4 and 5 conceptualize how mobile phone technology can be used to improve MNCH The framework is an overarching conceptual model for promoting and using mHealth for MNCH from which workplans and results frameworks can be developed Why it helps with planning Lays out how mHealth can be applied in MNCH programs and aligns with the MDGs Highlights guiding principles operational priorities illustrative outcomes and potential stakeholders for consideration during the planning process
- ItemMAMA Bangladesh (Aponjon) Formative Research Report(2013)The MAMA Aponjon formative research report is a practice oriented evaluation of the MAMA program during its initial phase of implementation in Bangladesh Developed by a joint team from the Johns Hopkins University Global mHealth Initiative and Dnet the report focuses on 1 identifying the most effective programmatic strategies to guide future implementation of Aponjon and 2 outlines gaps in existing monitoring and evaluation systems to guide future avenues for research Why it helps for planning Details formative research process and go to market testing which in turn informs program implementation Includes research forms
- ItemMAMA Community Spotlight Series(2013)In 2013 the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action MAMA launched a Community Spotlight series to highlight some of the work being done by organizations using MAMA s adaptable mobile messages The Community Spotlight series features organizations that are using mobile technology to improve maternal newborn and child health The current spotlights include ChatSalud Nicaragua July 2014 In Nicaragua one in four adolescent girls will become pregnant before the age of 19 and in rural Nicaragua the rate rises to one in three At the same time over 90 of Nicaraguans have access to a cell phones Using a combination of MAMA messaging m4RH messaging and messaging from local organizations as a base ChatSalud adapted a combination of these messages to fit the local context Chipatala Cha Pa Foni Malawi September 2013 The Chipatala Cha Pa Foni CCPF in Malawi is a hotline and voice text based tips and reminders service providing women and guardians of young children in rural and underserved areas with access to information medical advice and referrals on reproductive maternal newborn and child health RMNCH issues Savana Signatures Ghana August 2013 Savana Signatures is currently implementing a Technology for Maternal Health project in four districts Tamale Yendi Savelugu and Kumbungu and six health facilities Kings Medical Center Yendi Savelugu Tamale Central Tamale West and Tamale Teaching hospitals in Ghana Living Goods Uganda June 2013 The complete case study of how Living Goods Uganda has used the MAMA adabtable messaging including challenges lessons learned and future plans to scale up Healthy Pregnancy Health Baby Text Messaging Service Tanzania July 2013 The complete case study of how Healthy Pregnancy Healthy Baby Text Messaging Service in Tanzania has used the MAMA adaptable messaging including challenges lessons learned and future plans to scale up The Liga Inan Project Timor Leste May 2013 The Liga Inan Mobile Moms Project is using mobile phones to connect expectant mothers with health care providers in Timor Leste to improve the likelihood of a healthy pregnancy and birth The goal of the Liga Inan project is to increase utilization of quality skilled care before during and after delivery Check the MAMA s Tools Resources page for future updates Why these help with planning Case studies that highlight how programs have used MAMA s adaptable mobile messages Examples of mHealth planning process in action Links ChatSalud NicaraguaChipatala Cha Pa Foni MalawiThe Liga Inan Project TanzaniaSavana Signatures GhanaLiving Goods UgandaHealthy Pregnancy Healthy Baby Text Messaging Service Tanzania
- ItemMeasuring sustainability as a programming tool for health sector investments: report from a pilot sustainability assessment in five Nepalese health districtsIn this report ICF International experts discuss a unique pilot of the systematic use of the sustainability framework in five districts of Nepal supported by the U S Agency for International Development USAID through different project partners and how progress can be assessed at a district level and monitored at a program level ICF concluded that systematic application of the sustainability framework can improve the international health sector investment decisions of development agencies It also gives districts an information base on which to build autonomy and accountability The ability to form and test hypotheses about the sustainability of outcomes under various funding strategies was made possible by this approach and will be a prerequisite for more efficiently meeting the international health agenda Why it helps with planning Provides a framework for planning for sustainability that could be applied to mHealth programs and could also improve investment decisions of development agencies
- ItemmHealth Innovations as Health System Strengthening Tools: 12 Common Applications and a Visual FrameworkThis new framework lays out 12 common mHealth applications used as health systems strengthening innovations across the reproductive health continuum Why it helps with planning Provides a comprehensive framework for thinking about the ways in which mHealth contributes to strengthening health systems While focus is on reproductive health the framework can be applied to other technical areas
- ItemmHealth: Mobile Technology to Strengthen Family Planning ProgramsHigh Impact Practices in Family Planning HIPs are promising or evidence based practices that when scaled up and institutionalized will maximize investments in a comprehensive family planning strategy The newest in this collection of briefs is mHealth mobile technology to strengthen family planning programs This eight page brief focuses on mobile health mHealth and how mHealth approaches may hold the potential to strengthen family planning programming including reaching underserved populations and addressing critical health systems issues in areas such as human resources health management information systems and financing This eight page brief discusses the potential impact of this new technology and provides tips that represent a synthesis of lessons learned from published literature gray literature and in depth interviews with 18 mHealth experts How it helps with planning As an USAID High Impact Practices Brief this document provides the evidence for why how mHealth applies to family planning programs and includes key planning and implementation lessons Also serves as an advocacy piece
- ItemOperational Challenges in the Cambodian mHealth RevolutionEven when an mHealth intervention is known to be effective the structure of the telecommunications industry combined with user behaviors can make it extremely difficult to implement in some countries Four significant operational challenges facing mHealth programs in Cambodia have been identified through the author s own experiences implementing mHealth initiatives with the Cambodian Health Education Media Service CHEMS These challenges are potentially relevant to other countries with similar telecommunication markets Why it helps with planning Highlights mHealth operational challenges related to the structure of the telecom industry and user behavior underscoring the importance of formative research