Last Updated: 01/08/2016
Improving diagnosis, case management and surveillance of malaria and syphilis, through point-of-care mobile devices
Objectives
The project was conducted in Geita District, Tanzania, to test using a mobile device integrated with information services to interpret RDTs for malaria and syphilis and to collect and transmit health information from peripheral point-of-care facilities to the district, regional and national levels in real time.
Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) are considered a viable approach to deliver highly accurate diagnoses of both malaria and syphilis at POC, since they have demonstrated quite acceptable clinical performance in the lab.
However, there are obstacles to the widespread implementation of this strategy, such as a lack of proper quality assurance of RDT-based programs at POC and reporting constraints, especially in remote areas of low-income countries. Current RDT practices are also prone to human error that can impact testing accuracy.
There is a need to provide an automated interpretation of RDTs to improve the accuracy of diagnoses and compliance with treatment guidelines and to facilitate data collection.
By providing real-time electronic data collection using mobile phone networks, HPMs will be able to access timely epidemiological information in the cloud service, in order to monitor the quality of RDT-based diagnosis, appropriate use of resources, and to assist in the data-driven decision-making process.
Apr 2013 — Mar 2014
$98,234


