jopsa.org

A lot has happened in the last 6 months. Everyone involved with Mobiles in Malawi is excited by the SMS program’s impact on healthcare delivery at St. Gabriel’s Hospital. The medical staff and participating CHWs have taken ownership of the initiative, and what’s left of a public service grant will keep the program running for 10-15 years – at just $500 per year.

St. Gabriel’s is certainly not alone in the challenges it faces as a rural healthcare provider. After witnessing the effects of simple ideas and equally uncomplicated technology on medical care, one thing was clear – each day that a clinic goes without tools they want and need is a day with undue hardship.

To date, I am talking with healthcare organizations working in eleven countries (Burundi, Malawi, Uganda, Zambia, Mozambique, India, Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, Peru, and Haiti) about partnerships to expand the tools and strategies used at St. Gabriel’s to their respective sites. Details regarding these organizations and my role in supporting them will be expounded upon at jopsa.org in the coming weeks. In addition to healthcare providers, I’m honored to be collaborating with kiwanja.net, The kiwanja Foundation, the FrontlineSMS team, and MobilizeMRS.

After speaking with global health organizations and the clinics they’re linked to, it is clear that 2009 must be a year of action. Everything that happens will be posted here. I hope you’ll join me on this journey, and share your thoughts along the way.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 at 3:31 am and is filed under CHW Training, HIV/AIDS Care, Home-Based Care, Technology, Tuberculosis Management. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.