Telehealth in the developing world: current status and future prospects

Figures & data

Table 1 Health issues and needs of the developing world

Age	Although also experiencing an “aging population” phenomenon, developing countries still see a youthful demographic (some African countries have a median age of just 15 years)
Poverty	Despite MDG progress, the extreme poor (one in five people in developing regions) still live on less than $1.25 per day
Communicable diseases	HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria remain prevalent
Maternal and child health	Despite MDG progress, mortality remains unacceptably high in many locations
Violence and conflict	Interpersonal violence and conflict are greatest in the developing world
Workforce shortages	Number, skill level, and focus (expertise in health; e-health; technical support) remain critically low
Critical mass	Inability to “build the capacity to build capacity”
Poor district health systems	Understaffed and underresourced, particularly rural and remote locations
Poor district health information systems	Inadequate data collection and analysis capability; long delays if paper-based
Access	Limited availability of broadband internet and other network communication systems
Cost	High communication costs (infrastructure and usage fees)
Literacy	Educational and technological literacy remain low
Language	Differences in languages spoken by remote health care providers and local patients prevalent; local languages may lack words to express certain meaning or activity
Political support	Unrealistic expectations and poor understanding squander political will and commitment to sustainable telehealth
Power (electricity)	Inadequate access and unstable supply

Abbreviations: MDG, Millennium Development Goals; TB, tuberculosis.

Table 2 Number of m-health initiatives taking place in selected developing countries (GSMA m-Health Tracker; August 2014)

Latin America and Caribbean
Argentina	4
Belize	1
Brazil	11
Chile	2
Colombia	6
Haiti	4
Peru	12
venezuela	2
Asia
Afghanistan	6
People’s Republic of China	15
India	66
Indonesia	9
Malaysia	2
Mongolia	0
Pakistan	12
Philippines	14
Singapore	1
Thailand	7
Vietnam	6
Africa
Cameroon	2
Botswana	13
Cameroon	2
Chad	1
Ethiopia	9
Kenya	44
Nigeria	34
Rwanda	6
South Africa	96
Tanzania	30
Uganda	2

Abbreviation: GSMA, Groupe Speciale Mobile Association.

Table 3 The primary risk factor that accounts for the most disease burden in 187 countries studied in the GBD study 2010

Primary risk factor	Number of countries
Dietary risks	101 (53%)
Childhood underweight	31 (17%)
High body mass index	19 (10%)
Household air pollution from solid fuels	12 (6%)
Alcohol use	8 (4%)
High blood pressure	6 (3%)
Tobacco smoking	5 (3%)
High fasting plasma glucose	3 (2%)
Suboptimal breast-feeding	2 (2%)

Abbreviation: GBD, Global Burden of Disease.