February 2008 Winner
Mashavu: Networked Health Solutions for the Developing W...
Mashavu: Networked Health Solutions for the Developing World
Idea Description
Mashavu is a laptop-based system that enables children in the developing world to connect with doctors (anywhere) using existing cell-phone infrastructure. Mashavu stations in developing communities will collect essential medical data from each child on a regular basis using sensors. This information will be sent thru cell-phones to web servers. Doctors & health administrators will be able to log on to a web portal to supervise the health of kids they have “adopted”, provide medical feedback to the child's caregivers, and monitor regional health statistics. Mashavu also has potential for disaster situations due to its quick implementation.
*Mashavu is Swahili for "chubby-cheeked"
What will you do if you win $10,000 for this idea?
Our team of Penn State University students developed a working prototype and are improving upon this based on expert feedback. We have also formed multiple partnerships and Mashavu is being piloted in Northern Tanzania Summer 2008.
All funding is going towards continued prototype development.
Additional web servers, laptops, medical sensors, and power sources(solar?) are currently the major project needs.
This is a great idea! How many doctors/children in your system do you plan to start with? Please check out my idea (http://ideablob.com/ideas/1493-OpenNoteBooks-com-Online-stud) and leave some feedback. Thank you!
Good question...for the pilot , we currently have a small group of doctors and residents (<10) and I believe the school and orphanage we are working with has maybe 40-50 kids. Once we complete the pilot test, we should have valuable insight towards improving the system and scaling upwards.
Good Luck in Winning
This sounds like a very interesting venture. Will there be any presentations or info sessions on campus this semester?
Good luck, its gonna go great!!
mms5035, I don't have any definite dates yet, but there will certainly be some info sessions and demos later on in the semester. I've got your psuid and I'll be sure to keep you informed.
Habari yako? Best of luck! Hope you make it!
This is wonderful.................. God created man, and woman to think exactly as you do, for the good of mankind. PEACE, BARBARA BELLEHUMEUR PS Perhaps the Ehlers Danlos Foundation and or the NIH would be interested and appreciate this type of technology also. These are very rare conditions. Life threatening symptoms develop spontaneously. What an accurate and immediate way this could be to diagnose internal organ rupture andor tissue damage.........dislocations, etc that manifest from EDS. Time is of the essence. A trip to the ER sometimes means certain death to the patient. Physicians are not prepared to deal with orphan disorders like this. Many patients have lost their lives due to improper or untimely diagnosis. Where have you been? bb
This is a great idea. Thank you for your comment. My concept is very different from any other tagging in many ways, we take tagging deeper, and we've filed patents on it.
This is a fabulous concept!! An excellent opportunity for US health care professionals to get involved with children and adults in Africa.
you are on your way no doubt
Hey, Just an FYI, I came to the site, checked you guys out, and registered in order to vote for you. When I got to the site, you had 18 votes. I've since registered and voted for you, and its still showing up that you only have 18 votes, even when I leave the site and come back... The idea seems to good to only have 18 votes! Good luck...
I registered and logged in, but wasn't able to vote... will try again later
All, voting for this round was not explained clearly and i think there are some bugs on their site. After you register, you need to confirm your e-mail address. Sometimes the confirmation email gets sent to your junk folder so check there if you haven't got it. Make sure you click to vote from the front page, and also, the votes are only updated 1x per day at 1 a.m..
Great idea! Good luck.
Great project! I am interested in how nurses are incorporated into it, they are vital to any health care initiative succeeding. Good Luck. Kathy
This sounds like a worthy project. I do have some concerns. This should not be considered a "business venture". How will you authenticate user data? Could misdiagnoses occur that could not easily be detected without an actual physical examination. Have you discussed this with Doctors Without Borders? Who will hold the records? What kind of security measures will be taken? Have you filed reports regarding research related to human subjects with Penn State University? Are you working closely with the Center for Disease Control in the US and International Health Organization?
Go Mashavu!
This is a really awesome idea! I love that it uses an infrastructure that is already there...and how it potentially gives doctors in the US an opportunity to "adopt" a kid in a developing country and oversee their care. Amazing! I hope you win.Do you already have a time set up when you will go and set up the system this summer?
convivia, I disagree and I think many others would as well...one has to consider this as a business venture, it is the really the only way to make it a sustainable project. We don't want this to just be a charitable handout, the community needs to have equity in it. Ideally the system would be able to generate revenue that could be reinvested within the community. Also, realize that this system is meant to allow doctors to give medical advice and expertise, not necessarily diagnose patients. Often times proper medical care is many miles or hours away and making the decision to go can be difficult. We are aware of some organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and we will certainly keep them in mind as the project progresses. We are also in the process of developing test plans to…more submit to IRB for approval. You have some very good questions which we have certainly considered, but the project is still in its infancy and some of those are more advanced steps should the pilot testing in June prove successful. Thanks for your feedback! -Aaron
Great idea. This project should not be one sided. Developing doctors should also be invited to participate. Doctors and nurses of the North are not the only ones who have the sensibilities to donate time or adopt a child. -- Kidevu.
I wish you guys all the best. This is a great opportunity to make a difference in children lives that are less fortunate. Good luck and all the best. " To the world you might be one person, but to one person you might be the world".
What an innovative idea...very original. Great concept of entrepreneurship for the community. These are going to be some very lucky children that I'm sure you will learn a lot from. I am glad you are going to pilot the idea with or without the money. Good Luck!!!
this sounds very similar to Telemedicus' DREAMS platform already commercially available for the delivery of medical data transfer and mobility. the website of Telemedicus is www.telemedicus.com. I encourage you to look at it and decide for yourself. Thanks.