Electronic Health in Ghana: Current Status and Future Prospects

The health-care system in Ghana is similar to those in other developing countries and access to health services for remote communities is extremely limited. In July, 2010, the Government of Ghana launched the national e health strategy. A number of international organizations have initiated various pilot projects, including disseminating and collecting data, education initiatives and telemedicine. In addition, several institutions and organizations are dedicated to the promotion of e-health and a range of Web-based health consultancy services have begun. The main objective of this study is to provide an overview of eHealth activities in Ghana. It was a daunting task, not least because of the need to gather information on eHealth projects and initiatives in Ghana, as there is no existing repository of such information. Through literature search in Africa journals online, Hinari, Medline, Google.com, Journal of Telemedicine and e-Health, Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, Journal of Medical Internet Research and Interaction with eHealth experts, followed up with some of the authors' for directions to other projects, and following the references in some articles. A total of twenty-two (22) pilot projects have been identified in Ghana. Mobile devices in use range from PDAs to simple phones and smart phones. The key findings of this research are that there are about 22 eHealth project at various stages of implementation in Ghana. Some of these projects have wind up and others are still being implemented. Mobile devices in use range from PDAs to simple mobile phones and smart phones. Most of the projects have been donor initiated. Data collection started in March 2010 to June 2013. Although eHealth seems to have a limited role in Ghana at present, there is growing interest in the opportunities it may offer in terms of improving the delivery and access to services, especially in remote locations. Recommendations for further research are provided.