mHealth Basics: Introduction to Mobile Technology for Health

mHealth is the use of mobile and wireless technologies to support the achievement of health objectives.

The widespread use of mobile phones is one reason why this practice is rapidly progressing. This course provides an introduction to this emerging field and an overview of best practices for mHealth solution development.

The focus of the course is on mHealth applications commonly used in developing country contexts.

When you have finished this course, you will be able to:

• Define mHealth and its relationship to eHealth and ICT
• Explain the importance of mHealth
• Explain potential benefits and limitations of mHealth
• Describe the mobile devices and features commonly used in mHealth in low-resource settings
• Describe the six types of mHealth applications
• Describe preliminary conclusions from the evidence on mHealth
• Describe recommended best practices for each phase of mHealth solution development
• Identify examples of best practices in mHealth solution development scenarios
• Identify and obtain resources for additional information about mHealth