This project aims to better the health of the people of Africa through integrated management of community health networks to break the cycle of community dependence and empower them to manage their own health needs.

This goes beyond data collection and the introduction of technology into communities without grounding in local processes. Health networks already exist. This project uses mobiles to support existing community structures making them more efficient, ensuring sustainability within an enabling environment with the health system at its heart.

Community organizations are a central node in the community health system. This project will enable the creation of better health networks by recognizing that:

1. Communities have a large amount of health resources available to them

2. Often these resources are inefficient with disjointed information flows and unconscious liaison

3. Community organizations can be a legitimate space to act as a node to map resources, enable information to flow, and act as a central point for referrals

4. Critical in this equation is role of the community care giver, based within organization, who is the point person in delivering care and referring patients.

Using mobile phone technology can help connect different points on the health network together (see figure 1), with the community organization acting as a call centre to link clients with health providers. The role of mobile technology here is to act as a lubricant to network services, linking the client to locally available services, such as, clinics, tradiational medicine, supportive transport providers, legal assistance and to other virtual mobile services.

Better health is enabled because the mobile phone can help to achieve the following results:

• Enable community organisations to facilitate referrals

• Provide answers to frequently asked questions through a query list and call centre

• Enable in-field real time communications

• Refer clients to anonymous call centres

• Real time tracking and management of community health information collated through ongoing interactions

Facilitating the implementation of this project is the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF) in South Africa. Operational Research is currently being developed and implemented in South Africa through the existing PEPFAR funded childrens project. Lessons will be taken throughout East and Southern Africa through AMREF's other country offices to break the cycle of learnt helplessness.