Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal
Despite progress in global healthcare, rural communities remain marginalised from receiving healthcare access. Studies have recognised the importance of community health workers (CHW) in extending healthcare delivery to these communities as well as the transformative use of Information and Commun...
| Główni autorzy: | , , |
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| Kolejni autorzy: | |
| Format: | Final Year Project (FYP) |
| Język: | English |
| Wydane: |
2010
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| Hasła przedmiotowe: | |
| Dostęp online: | http://hdl.handle.net/10356/38800 |
| _version_ | 1826117241064652800 |
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| author | Muhammad Nazran Ahmad Faiz Mohd Irwan Law Nadia Bte Mohamed Ismail |
| author2 | Arul Indrasen Chib |
| author_facet | Arul Indrasen Chib Muhammad Nazran Ahmad Faiz Mohd Irwan Law Nadia Bte Mohamed Ismail |
| author_sort | Muhammad Nazran Ahmad |
| collection | NTU |
| description | Despite progress in global healthcare, rural communities remain marginalised from receiving
healthcare access. Studies have recognised the importance of community health workers
(CHW) in extending healthcare delivery to these communities as well as the transformative
use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for healthcare development. This
research examines the potential of a sustainable ICT system for CHWs in Achham, Nepal,
using the Technology-Community-Management-Vulnerabilities (TCMV) framework. The
study examined the information and communication needs of stakeholders within the current
system and assessed barriers to effectiveness. The research was conducted in conjunction
with Nyaya Health, which operates the Bayalpata Hospital and runs a CHW programme in
collaboration with the Nepali government. Qualitative research methods (n=57) respondents
were engaged through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews.
Findings revealed CHWs' work-related information needs were unmet due to inadequate
communication infrastructure, medical training and education, and highly bureaucratic
government protocols. Furthermore, CHWs were burdened by informational, economic,
socio-cultural and physiological/psychological vulnerabilities. Based on the TCMV model,
recommendations were made to equip CHWs with mobile handsets and to introduce SMSbased
protocols to facilitate efficient patient scheduling and referral. This system should be
accompanied by financial subsidy and training to operate the mobile technology. These
proposals are small scale but can be adapted incrementally over time to ensure sustainability.
Apart from informing policy, this research serves to guide the decisions of healthcare
practitioners and influence local ownership in Achham's rural healthcare system. |
| first_indexed | 2024-10-01T04:24:23Z |
| format | Final Year Project (FYP) |
| id | ntu-10356/38800 |
| institution | Nanyang Technological University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-10-01T04:24:23Z |
| publishDate | 2010 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | ntu-10356/388002019-12-10T11:03:24Z Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal Muhammad Nazran Ahmad Faiz Mohd Irwan Law Nadia Bte Mohamed Ismail Arul Indrasen Chib Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models Despite progress in global healthcare, rural communities remain marginalised from receiving healthcare access. Studies have recognised the importance of community health workers (CHW) in extending healthcare delivery to these communities as well as the transformative use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for healthcare development. This research examines the potential of a sustainable ICT system for CHWs in Achham, Nepal, using the Technology-Community-Management-Vulnerabilities (TCMV) framework. The study examined the information and communication needs of stakeholders within the current system and assessed barriers to effectiveness. The research was conducted in conjunction with Nyaya Health, which operates the Bayalpata Hospital and runs a CHW programme in collaboration with the Nepali government. Qualitative research methods (n=57) respondents were engaged through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. Findings revealed CHWs' work-related information needs were unmet due to inadequate communication infrastructure, medical training and education, and highly bureaucratic government protocols. Furthermore, CHWs were burdened by informational, economic, socio-cultural and physiological/psychological vulnerabilities. Based on the TCMV model, recommendations were made to equip CHWs with mobile handsets and to introduce SMSbased protocols to facilitate efficient patient scheduling and referral. This system should be accompanied by financial subsidy and training to operate the mobile technology. These proposals are small scale but can be adapted incrementally over time to ensure sustainability. Apart from informing policy, this research serves to guide the decisions of healthcare practitioners and influence local ownership in Achham's rural healthcare system. Bachelor of Communication Studies 2010-05-19T01:12:52Z 2010-05-19T01:12:52Z 2010 2010 Final Year Project (FYP) http://hdl.handle.net/10356/38800 en Nanyang Technological University 156 p. application/pdf |
| spellingShingle | DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models Muhammad Nazran Ahmad Faiz Mohd Irwan Law Nadia Bte Mohamed Ismail Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title | Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title_full | Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title_fullStr | Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title_short | Manoeuvring in the mountains : Exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in Nepal |
| title_sort | manoeuvring in the mountains exploring the potential of an information and communication technology system for community health workers in nepal |
| topic | DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/10356/38800 |
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