This evaluation looks at a project led by Massachusetts-based organisation SATELLIFE, to test the use of PDAs in healthcare environments in three African countries. The project put PDAs into the hands of physicians, medical officers, and medical students in different settings in order to demonstrate their viability and usefulness, especially for the collection of health data and dissemination of medical information. The project was conducted in Ghana, Uganda, and Kenya during December 2001-December 2002.

This study evaluates a project led by On Cue, a small company based in Cape Town, South Africa, which sends SMS messages to patients via mobile telephones, reminding them to take their tuberculosis (TB) medication at pre-determined times. This service aims to provide an affordable solution to improve patient adherence to TB treatment and reduce the associated costs of the directly observed therapy system for both patients and clinics. This report presents the lessons learned so far, as well as other uses of cellular technology in the healthcare sector.

The bridges.org/IICD Case Study Series on ICT-Enabled Development sets out to illustrate how ICT contributes to development in Africa. The aim of this series is to help ground level initiatives imagine the possibilities of what can happen if they use ICT successfully to overcome development obstacles, and to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on the digital divide.

I. Overview

Initiative: The Tygerberg Children's Hospital and Rotary Telemedicine Project in South Africa links specialists from Tygerberg Hospital to doctors at regional community or "district" hospitals to improve healthcare in rural areas. The initiative has assembled its own telemedicine system using off-the-shelf computer equipment and software that is more affordable than commercial telemedicine systems.

The bridges.org IICD Case Study Series on ICT-Enabled Development sets out to illustrate how information and communication technology (ICT) contributes to development in Africa. The aim of this series is to help ground level initiatives imagine the possibilities of what can happen if they use ICT successfully to overcome development obstacles, and to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on the digital divide.