Using mHealth to Reduce Pregnancy Related Deaths in Developing Countries

GOAL:

To help local Nepalese trained staff to triage maternal-perinatal conditions on medical treks to remote resource-poor areas of Nepal by

1. Simplifying the ultrasound process for trainees in remote areas, and/or
2. Allowing ultrasound images  to be transmitted to medical centres

WHY NEEDED: 

1. Currently the process for performing an ultrasound is complex so any simplification/automation will help more trainees perform ultrasounds effectively.  As ultrasound scanning is a highly skilled and operator dependent endeavour, we hope that this solution will help in reducing maternal and infant morbidity and mortality
2. By enabling ultrasound images to be transmitted from remote areas to medical centres, the solution will improve the care of the mothers in remote areas.

SOCIAL GOOD:

This solution will help reduce the maternal mortality rate in Nepal, which has one of the highest maternal mortality rates (740 per 100,000 births) which translate to nearly 4,500 maternal deaths annually according to estimates by the Ministry of Health.

PROPOSED OUTPUT:

1. Video guide to performing ultrasound 
2. Mobile app  to manipulate ultrasound images such that they can be sent via cellular (MMS) network (ALTERNATIVE: App to submit measurements and readings from ultrasound devices?)

USERS:

Trainees in remote Nepalese villages, non-technical.

USER CONSTRAINTS:

Users are unlikely to have wired or wireless broadband so transmission solution must work over cellular (e.g. MMS) network or be distributed non-real-time.

SOLUTION CONSTRAINTS:

1. User computers will not always be high powered and internet connections may be intermittent. Download more practical than streaming?
2. Image size might be too large for available networks. Data might need to be integrated into hospital systems (proprietary? Closed? Standards?)

DATA SOURCES:

Youtube videos can act as sample video for the how-to solution

Data (images) generated by ultrasound machines in field.

KNOWN EXISTING SOLUTIONS:

1. None suggested
2. Possibly POSIT, an Android APP created by HFOSS.org with little or no customization.(David Black connect with Ralph at Trinity University /Rhode Island) , who drive HFOSS.org. ?)

POTENTIAL TECH SKILLS NEEDED: 

Mobile