IBM interns are teaming up with Novartis and Vodafone to use text
messaging and the Web to fight malaria in Africa.
The three companies, along with the Roll Back Malaria Partnership,
are piloting a project called SMS for Life to use text messaging
and Web sites built with Lotus Live collaboration tools to track
and manage supplies of anti-malarial drugs, IBM said.
The program is running a five-month pilot in 135 villages in
Tanzania, where healthcare staff receive automated text messages
that prompt them to check remaining stock of anti-malarial drugs
each week. Then, staff reply to a database in the UK with current
stock levels via text messages sent through a toll-free number, so
deliveries can be made before supplies run out. During the first
few weeks of the program, the number of health clinics that ran out
of drugs was reduced by as much as 75 percent. Vodafone developed
the SMS technology in conjunction with technology partner
MatsSoft.
The technology is used to track supplies of Artemisinin-based
Combination Therapy (ACT) drugs and Quinine injectables, both of
which are key to reducing the number of deaths from malaria. "The
mosquito-borne disease causes nearly one million deaths in Africa
each year, mostly among pregnant women and young children, and many
people die because they simply lack quick access to vital
medication," IBM said.
The program was developed by pharmaceutical company Novartis and a
team of international students in IBM's Extreme Blue internship
program. SMS for Life "relies on simple technology and fosters
self-sufficiency," IBM said. IBM managed the overall project.
Despite millions of dollars spent by governments and aid
organizations distributing effective anti-malarial drugs to local
health centers, more than a million people in Africa die every year
from the disease, which strikes particularly hard at pregnant women
and young children, IBM said.
"This is an example of a truly innovative solution helping solve a
humanitarian problem," said Peter Ward of IBM, SMS for Life Project
Manager. "After spending time on the ground, we created a project
plan, developed the application with Vodafone and Novartis and
established the best way to deliver the pilot, working with the
Tanzanian Ministry of Health. We expect other countries will also
be able to benefit in the future."
"The early success of the SMS for Life pilot project has the
Tanzanian authorities interested in implementing the solution
across the rest of the country," IBM said. Tanzania has about 5,000
clinics, hospitals and dispensaries, and up to half of them might
be out of stock of anti-malarial drugs at any given time.