Highlighting the C in ICT: Key communication and culture questions in ICT for health

摘要

These words from an InfoDev (World Bank) report on the status of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) highlight an important gap in the ever-expanding ICT and health field. In the last 15 years, ICT use in health has rapidly increased throughout the world. ICTs have been hailed as a transformative tool especially in developing countries where limited resources are coupled with dire health needs. Projects ranging from telemedicine use in remote villages to mHealth facilitated interventions are being implemented in urban and rural settings. While their potential is great, ICT evaluation remains scarce, and there is limited consensus on what works (Gurman, Rubin, & Roess, 2012; Sherry & Ratzan, 2012). Efforts to establish an evidence base (for mHealth interventions) are emerging (see mhealthevidence.org, for example), but the technology remains at the forefront of the field.