The role of internet of things to support health services in rural communities. A case study of Ghana and Sierra Leone

Abstract

Incidence of preventable diseases in rural parts of Ghana and Sierra Leone is unacceptably high, which calls for innovative solutions to be directed towards addressing this issue. The intention of this research is to examine the potential contributions of internet of things technologies (IoT) towards health improvement in low-resourced settings with emphasis on transforming patients care and improving efficiency in rural Ghana and Sierra Leone. The research project investigates and identifies appropriate mechanisms by which IoTs technologies could be leveraged to mitigate health burdens in poor communities with emphasis on enhancing remote monitoring of patients health, increasing access to health information, training of healthcare professionals and reducing out-of-pocket health expenditure.