GIFTED MOM

•  Gifted Mom provides an SMS service and a mobile app to enable women in remote provincial areas in Cameroon, Africa to get free physician consultations.
• The telemedicine service is seen to be on-track to decrease the mortality rates of women during childbirth by 70% in the year 2020.

OM HOSPITAL AND RESEARCH CENTRE AND THE APOLLO HOSPITAL

• In Nepal, remote rural communities that have minimal access to infrastructure have benefited from several telemedicine services in the area.
• The main providers of telemedicine services in the rural areas are the Om Hospital and Research Centre
• in Kathmandu and the Apollo Hospital in New Delhi.
• The hospitals are working with the Nepal Wireless Networking Project (NWNP) to provide the wireless-enabled audio-video medical services using "Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology and web cameras."

SICHUAN PROVINCE'S TELEMEDICINE SERVICES

• Based on a past study of a telemedicine service in China's Sichuan province, the initiative was able to link around 249 hospitals in 112 rural regions with state-of-the-art urban hospitals. The service covered around 40 medical specialization areas.
• During the 12-year duration of the telemedicine initiative, around 11,897 teleconsultations were conducted.
• Furthermore, 39.8% of the initial medical assessments were changed after the sessions. With regard to the initially-prescribed treatments, around 55% were changed after the sessions.
• The service also resulted in $3.2 million worth of savings for the patients and around $3.7 million for the physicians.

INDIA'S TELEMEDICINE INITIATIVES

• In India, the primary telemedicine projects are the following: Apollo, Otri, and the Asia Heart Foundation.
• Around 750 sessions are being conducted each month through these initiatives.

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON TELEMEDICINE SERVICES

• Based on what was seen in real-life telemedicine applications, the majority of telemedicine initiatives are effective if these are financially well-supported.
• This is especially true during the initial stages of the service.
• However, once the funds are depleted, the telemedicine service quality starts to decline.
• In China, the key telemedicine challenges encountered include clashes with traditional medical beliefs, lack of economic motivators for doctors, and the limited number of telemedicine-trained personnel.
• In Africa, major obstacles to effective telemedicine services include the lack of effective telecommunication policies, tax concerns, and highly limited communication infrastructure.