Who’s afraid of the digital divide? - III

Could information and communication technology (ICT) be that great leveller that has eluded society from the beginnings of modern civilisation?

At a macro level, it's pretty well-known how ICT has impacted and transformed every field from agriculture and medicine to meteorology and aeronautics. But in the context of ICT for development and bridging the digital divide, what is really of concern is to extend the benefits of technology to people who have traditionally been left out of the game. When we talk of the technology 'have-nots,' our goal is not necessarily to get them all to use and buy computers or mobile phones. Yet there are innumerable specific areas in which ICT can be used to improve the lives of this underprivileged lot and provide them with opportunities that would otherwise be unlikely to come their way. Information technology is also enabling microfinance systems, which in turn encourage microenterprise, stemming the endless and unsustainable rural-to-urban migration that's the bane of the developing world. Here are but a few examples of how ICT is improving the life of rural populations in India, which as a country has been witness to the entire range of problems as well as potential solutions associated with the digital divide.

Telemedicine: Tens of thousands of villages in the rural areas of the poorer countries remain without adequate healthcare facilities. Even as primary healthcare centres and makeshift dispensaries are being constructed, there is a perennial shortage of trained doctors and nurses. For instance, India has just one doctor for every 15,000 people, and specialists are even rarer. Almost 70 percent of India's population is rural, while over 80 percent of doctors live in cities. But, with videoconferencing and remote diagnostic kits, thousands of villagers are now inexpensively enjoying the same level of treatment as their urban counterparts. One company, Neurosynaptic Communications, has developed inexpensive telemedicine kits with facilities for checking blood pressure, body temperature and ECG. The kit is also equipped with an electronic stethoscope, and soon will have other physiological and biochemical tests integrated. The diagnostic kit is connected to a kiosk with videoconferencing facilities, and readings are transmitted over low bandwidth links, permitting interaction between the doctor and remotely located patient, and hopefully, more accurate diagnosis. Apart from the obvious extension of quality healthcare to areas that couldn't before afford it, this system could bring down the cost of rural healthcare in India by a third.

 

Continue Reading : http://www.neurosynaptic.com/newslinks/news-1.htm