Old Phones Can Help Save Lives

We wanted to spread the word about this exciting campaign.

Hope Phones is a new campaign by FrontlineSMS:Medic that uses recycled mobile phones, laptops, and the FrontlineSMS software to create health networks which enable rural clinics to provide better, more extensive care. From the Hope Phones press release:

Its first pilot project distributed cell phones to community health workers in 100 rural villages in Malawi, saving thousands of dollars in travel and hospital costs and doubling the number of patients treated for tuberculosis in the catchment area.

The organization uses FrontlineSMS, a free, open-source software program that enables large-scale, two-way text messaging using only a laptop, a GSM modem, and cell phones. Their pilot implementation model places a laptop running FrontlineSMS in a central clinic and distributes cell phones to healthcare workers to coordinate care with patients in peripheral villages. Their programs currently serve 1.2 million patients in Malawi and Uganda. Future development of the FrontlineSMS:Medic platform will encompass electronic medical records and diagnostics at the point of care.

To learn how you can help, check out HopePhones.org.  

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