This is an archived course. A more recent version may be available at ocw.mit.edu.

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Health Information Systems in Developing Countries

Objective Provide a background on health information systems that has been implemented in developing countries and the evidence on their impact.
Date February 11, 2011
Lecturer

Hamish Fraser
Director of Informatics and Telemedicine, Partners in Health; Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

Lecture

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Readings

  1. Blaya, Joaquin, Hamish S. Fraser, and Brian Holt. "Evaluations of the Impact of eHealth Technologies in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review." Health Affairs 29, no. 2 (2010): 244-251.
  2. Blaya, Joaquin, et al. "Electronic Lab System Reduces Errors in National Tuberculosis Program: Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial." Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 14, no. 8 (2010): 1009-1015.
  3. Fraser, Hamish S., and Joaquin Blaya. "Implementing Medical Information Systems in Developing Countries, What Works and What Doesn't." AMIA Annu Symp Proc (2010): 232-236
  4. Were, Martin C. "Leapfrogging Paper-Based Records Using Handheld Technology: Experience From Western Kenya." Studies in Health Technology and Informatics 160 (2010): 525-529.
  5. Amoroso, Cheryl L., et al. "Using Electronic Medical Records for HIV Care in Rural Rwanda." Studies in Health Technology and Informatics 160 (2010): 337-341.

Supplemental

  1. Barrington, Jim, et al. "SMS for Life: A Pilot Pproject to Improve Anti-Malarial Drug Supply Management in Rural Tanzania Using Standard Technology." Malaria Journal 9, no. 298 (2010).
  2. Berger, Elisabeth, et al. "Implementation and Evaluation of a Web Based System for Pharmacy Stock Management in Rural Haiti." Proc AMIA Symp (2007): 46-50.
  3. Lester, Richard T., et al. "Effects of a Mobile Phone Short Message Service on Antiretroviral Treatment Adherence in Kenya (WelTel Kenya1): A Randomised Trial." Lancet 376, no. 9755 (2010): 1838-1845.
  4. Kahn, James G., Joshua S. Yang, and James S. Kahn, "'Mobile' Health Needs and Opportunities in Developing Countries." Health Affairs 29, no. 2 (2010): 252-258.

Discussion Questions

  1. What makes an eHealth tool suitable for use in a developing country?
  2. What are the barriers in the implementation and scaling of eHealth projects?
  3. What evidence is there that eHealth systems can have a positive impact on quality and access to care in resource poor environments?