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How PDAs Are Saving Lives In Africa

Posted by kdawson on from the port-it-to-the-olpc dept.

Mark Goldberg writes "UN Dispatch, the United Nations affairs blog I write, just posted an item that may interest this community. Joel Selanikio, a medical doctor and technologist, writes to us from Zambia to relay how PDA devices are quietly revolutionizing public health services in sub-Saharan Africa. Selanikio runs a non-profit called DataDyne.org that trains local health officials to use PDAs equipped with an open source software tool to track outbreaks, coordinate vaccination efforts, and perform other vital public health tasks. So far, says Selanikio, the pilot program in Zambia has been a resounding success.

2 of 53 comments (clear)

  1. Unfortunate naming by PresidentEnder · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Datadyne is the name of the evil corporation in Perfect Dark.

    --
    I used to carry a bottle of whiskey for snake bite. And two snakes. -Nefarious Wheel
  2. Fantastic by COMON$ · · Score: 4, Interesting
    This is great news, I have been peeking into ways to centralize information from third world countries mission projects. Our church here currently has a medical team that they send to haiti but there is an issue with creating a database to track individuals. Initially I was hoping to hook them up with access via a cell card in a laptop to a website running mySQL so that they could track prescriptions and individuals when they are back in the states.

    This solution seems a bit more elegant with PDAs. Has anyone else worked on a project like this?

    --
    CS: It is all sink or swim...oh and did I mention there are sharks in that water?