News: Digital Health

Strong Data Systems Are Crucial during Coronavirus

Data systems are crucial for health care all the time, but during a natural disaster, war, or pandemic like COVID-19, functioning data systems can mean the difference between life and death. Data help us know what the health needs are, what capabilities each nearby hospital and clinic has, and where health workers should be deployed. Essential for responding to a pandemic, these data help monitor the spread and intensity of disease and help...

IntraHealth International Urges Action to Protect Frontline Health Workers amid COVID-19 Pandemic

We at IntraHealth International are joining our partners in the Frontline Health Workers Coalition to urge action to protect health workers from on-the-job dangers introduced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. “Never has there been a more important time to focus on health workers,” said Polly Dunford , IntraHealth’s president and CEO, in Devex last week. “Rarely have they faced such danger on such a massive scale. We have an obligation to keep...

3 Things Frontline Health Workers Need to Battle COVID-19

We are entering week four of the COVID-19 pandemic, which also happens to coincide with World Health Worker Week. Never has there been a more appropriate time to focus on health workers. Rarely have they faced such danger on such a massive scale. We have an obligation to keep frontline health workers everywhere safe, including making sure all have the personal protective equipment, or PPE, they need. All over the world, we’re seeing reports of...

mHealth Tool Is Keeping Central American Clients Connected to HIV Care amid COVID-19 Shutdowns

In Central America, frontline health workers are using IntraHealth International’s mobile phone-based alerTAR system to let HIV clients know when, where, and how they can keep getting their antiretroviral therapies (ART), now that public transit and outpatient services in the region have halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These closures and shutdowns are leaving many clients unsure about where to pick up their medications and making it...

Three Early Digital Health COVID-19 Response Success Stories

Coronavirus infection rates are climbing exponentially around the world with over 440,000 confirmed cases and 20,000 deaths so far. Governments, donors, and health workers are scrambling to find digital health solutions they can use in COVID-19 response activities . While we desperately need innovative solutions now, we must be patient and : Avoid pilotitis that results in more failed ICT4D interventions Stop siloed systems development that...

We’re Moving Fast to Help Health Workers Worldwide Combat COVID-19

Today, as COVID-19 continues to invade our thoughts and lives, my mind is on frontline health workers. They don’t have the option to work from home, as many of us are doing today. They’re on the front lines as I write this—in hospitals, clinics, and triage centers around the world—putting themselves at risk to stop this pandemic. Now, more than ever, health workers need our support. Last week, as I began my new job as president & CEO at...

3 Ways Our Tools and Teams around the World Are Combatting COVID-19

It’s a whole new world for many of us this week. The US-based staff at IntraHealth International are working from home, conducting all our meetings online, and working fast to adapt our programs to help address the COVID-19 pandemic. For 40 years, we’ve known that frontline health workers are every country's first line in detecting, reporting, and responding to emerging threats. That's why we train and equip local health workers on disease...

Five COVID Response Insights for Digital Development Practitioners

The COVID Digital Response Workshop on March 12 brought together 300 digital development practitioners from governments, donors, and health systems in low- and middle-income countries to explore the challenges and opportunities for COVID-19 response. Subscribe now to get invited to future events. Over three hours, we explored the novel coronavirus impact on health care systems and where digital health solutions could improve resilience and reduce...

10 Global Digital Health Solutions for International Coronavirus Response

Global coronavirus infections now exceed 200,000 confirmed cases in 144 countries, with over 8,205 deaths from COVID-19, leading to international travel bans and almost 40 conference cancellations across the international development industry. Donors like USAID , DFID , World Bank , and Gates Foundation are asking, “What global digital health solutions are available for international COVID response that can be implemented by government health...

10 Women Who Are Shaping the Future of Global Health

Today 70% of the health workforce is made up of women. Yet they occupy only 25% of senior roles. “Leaving the gender balance to equalize on its own is not an option,” according to the World Health Organization . “Unless specific, targeted measures are taken, workplace gender equality is estimated to take 202 years.” We’ll need to tackle it long before then to reach universal health coverage. Lucky for us all, women all over the world—from the...