If you thought that mobiles phones were only useful for promoting communication within social groups and businesses then think again – these handy little gadgets are being used in the UK and across the world to improve the lives of those in need. Here’s a few of the innovative ways in which mobiles are being utilised to spread happiness and health.
In schools
Recent studies have showed that, far from hindering education in the classroom, mobile phones can actually help children learn. Research commissioned by Becta showed that teachers in three schools explored ways of using phones in class; as stopwatches for timing experiments, as photographing apparatus, to create models, receiving SMS reminders from teachers and connecting remotely to the school learning platform, and as much more. In every case, other teaches become interested and project teachers decided to continue using mobile phones.
As a support network
A programme developed by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in the US demonstrated that mobile phones could be used to track the mental health of young people suffering from depression. The programme, which could soon be used far more widely, helped doctors to treat 14 to 14-year-olds with mental health concerns through the use of mobile phones. It registered great success and has been awarded a Social Innovation Grant worth $285,000 from the Telstra Foundation.
In the third world
It’s not only the western world which is benefiting from the use of mobile phones to encourage social development. In Uganda, a group of dairy farmers have discovered a way of using mobiles to improve the supply of milk to the market in Uganda. The phones are used to deal with buyers, negotiate prices and organise delivery – and their use has lead to a large increase in profits for poor tradesmen.
In health
Many experts believe that
mobile phones could be used to increase the quality and efficiency of healthcare across the world, and a number of organisations are collaborating to this end. Vodafone, which operates as a mobile phone retailer and network provider in the UK, is a leader in this field – the Vodafone Foundation is collaborating with the United Nations Foundation to create a Health for Development programme which will help promote best practices in using mobile phones to help boost the quality of healthcare.
