Guardian

MEDICAL devices have been shown to be indispensable tools for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation in health care delivery.

Scientists and medical experts including the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) say eHealth solutions - from simple SMS appointment reminders on a mobile phone, to more complex electronic medical record systems - are powerful approaches in the use of information and communication technologies to support health systems and services.

However, despite the exponential growth of scientific and technological development, recent studies have shown that availability of and access to appropriate and affordable medical devices and eHealth solutions in low- and middle-income countries such as are still inadequate.

A systematic review of evaluations of e-health implementations in developing countries by United States researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Brookline, Massachusetts found that systems that improve communication between institutions, assist in ordering and managing medications, and help monitor and detect patients who might abandon care show promise.

According to the study published recently in Health Affinity, titled “E-health technologies show promise in developing countries” evaluations of personal digital assistants and mobile devices convincingly demonstrate that such devices can be very effective in improving data collection time and quality. Donors and funders should require and sponsor outside evaluations to ensure that future e-health investments are well-targeted.

The researchers found that eHealth technologies improves continuity of care to enhance patient and physician satisfaction by streamlining and largely automating transitions of care and by providing any external medical record and diagnostic quality image - when and where it is needed.

Dutch researchers Department of Psychology, Health and Technology/Centre for eHealth Research and Disease Management, Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, University of Twente, Enschede, Netherlands in another study concluded: “To demonstrate the impact of eHealth technologies more effectively, a fresh way of thinking is required about how technology can be used to innovate health care. It also requires new concepts and instruments to develop and implement technologies in practice. The proposed framework serves as an evidence-based roadmap.”

The study published in Journal of Medicine and Internet Resident is titled “A holistic framework to improve the uptake and impact of eHealth technologies.”

Meanwhile, the NMA has recommended electronic health (e-health) to improve service delivery.

The NMA said the concept of e-health is safe, secure, ethical and cost-effective transmission, exchange, sharing and dissemination of health data and information, through the utilisation of applications such as mobile health (m-health), telemedicine and electronic health records.

President NMA, Dr. Osahon Enabulele, told The Guardian that the implementation of a strategic e-health agenda and policy by the Nigerian government will greatly help to advance healthcare delivery in Nigeria, particularly in the face of the chronic shortage of health care professionals and limited resources with its consequent negative impact on the management of Nigeria’s disease burden.

Enabulele said the NMA in recognition of the benefits of e-health is willing and prepared to collaborate and cooperate with the federal government and other stakeholders to urgently put in place an effective strategy for the implementation of e-health in Nigeria, particularly one that includes a formidable governance and information architecture, as well as adequate resources and finances for its implementation in order to realize its immense benefits.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has called for innovative health technologies: medical devices and eHealth solutions for low-resource settings 2013.

The WHO said medical devices and eHealth solutions have the potential to improve lives but too many people worldwide suffer because they do not have access to the appropriate health technologies. This call highlights the importance of these innovative technologies towards improved health outcomes and the quality of life.

WHO said it aims to raise awareness of the pressing need for appropriate design solutions with a Compendium series, which was initiated to encourage a dialogue between stakeholders and stimulate further development and technology dissemination.

The yearly publication serves as a neutral platform to introduce health technologies that have the potential to improve health outcomes or to offer a solution to an unmet medical need.

The Compendium series specifically focuses on showcasing innovative medical devices and eHealth solutions that are not yet widely available in under-resourced regions. It is designed to help developing countries to become aware of appropriate health technologies in support of their environment.

The medical devices and eHealth units of WHO are striving to make available the benefits of core health technologies with the aim of addressing global health concerns. This is done – among other things - by developing a framework for technology assessment, management and regulation and by challenging the scientific and business communities to identify and develop innovative technologies.

This call aims to identify innovative health technologies that address global health concerns and that are likely to be appropriate and affordable for low-resource settings. Selected technologies will be featured in the “Compendium of innovative health technologies: medical devices and eHealth solutions for low-resource settings 2013” and can be accessed from the Medical Devices (www.who.int/medical_devices) and eHealth (www.who.int/ehealth) websites of WHO.