The key to a successful use of eHealth is that it should lead to a lasting and substantial improvement of performance. Experience teaches that a participatory design approach is required when using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and when designing health solutions. This creates a momentum for change. However, health facilities are often complex organizations and we learned that to create continuous and lasting change, explicit attention is required to the on-going process of organizational change. The momentum for change should be transformed in a pathway. IICD and its partners in Tanzania developed a practical and integrated approach that scaffolds health management information systems, telemedicine and e-learning in one integrated approach called the eHealth package, which has relevance worldwide.

The eHealth package is applied in the Lake Zone in Tanzania. It is embedded in a district approach to ensure a more conducive institutional and financial setting. Organizational and institutional issues proved to be key obstacles in applying ICT in health. Therefore the district approach is closely related to the national eHealth strategy. The strength of the eHealth package compared to other eHealth solutions is the integration of all aspects; technical, medical, financial, learning, behavioural change etc. in a flexible road map of best practices for eHealth implementation at a health facility.

(Source: IICD)
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