Businesses in Philippines Develop Information Systems To Improve Malaria Services
Globe Telecom and Pilipinas Shell Foundation recently signed an agreement to develop a program aimed at improving malaria reporting mechanisms in five malaria-endemic provinces in the Philippines, the Philippine Star reports. PSFI will administer the program with the support of a Round 5 grant from the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
The program, called Movement Against Malaria, will introduce the Malaria InfoText service, a text messaging channel that allows health workers to send and receive short reports and analyses about malaria cases and medical supplies. The service will enable PSFI to collect reports on the status of malaria cases, drug inventory and medical activity at more than 500 sites in the Philippines. In addition, the system will collate the reports to allow PSFI to assess and monitor the success of malaria control initiatives in the country.
According to the Philippine Star, the program aims to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality by 70% from 2003 rates in the five targeted provinces and contribute to the Department of Health's National Malaria Control Program's goal of eliminating malaria in the Philippines by 2020. In addition, the information system could improve PSFI's response time for addressing disease outbreaks, drug shortages and other incidents that could hinder the progress of malaria control initiatives. According to the Philippine Star, the Malaria InfoText service requires minimal training and can be modified to address other diseases (Philippine Star, 12/10).
