Center for Health Market Innovations (CHMI)

Programs

Jaroka Tele-healthcare

last updated Feb 10, 2012

Overview

Implementing organization: 
Umrana Mumtaz Healthcare Trust Hospital
Implementation Partner(s): 
GlobalGiving, Edhi Foundation, Shine Humanity, Association of Pakistani descent Physicians in North America (APPNA), National University of Science and Technology - School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (NUST-SEECS), Swinfen Charitable Trust, National University Hospital (NUH) - Singapore
Legal Status: 
Private (not-for-profit)
Year Launched: 
2008
Stage: 
Existing/expansion stage
Income Level of Target Population: 
Bottom 20%, 20-60% (lower to lower-middle), 60-90% (middle to upper-middle)

Funding

Primary Source of Funding: 
Out-of-pocket payments
Additional Source(s) of Funding: 
Donor
Funders: 
Google, Higher Education Commission (HEC), The Information Society Innovation Fund (ISIF), USAID

Technology

Technology Used: 
Phones › Apps/Software, Computer › Apps/Software, Computer › Internet, Phones › SMS/MMS (Text Message), Smart-card
Technology Purpose: 
Improving Data Management › Data Collection, Facilitating Patient Communications › Encouraging Patient Compliance, Extending Geographic Access, Improving Data Management › Data Organization/Analysis, Improving Diagnosis and Treatment, Mitigating Fraud & Abuse

Scale

Number of Clients Served: 
about 100 patients/day; 130,000 patients overall (as of Dec. 2011)
Number of Facilities Operated/Networked: 
1 hospital
Other Measures of Scale: 
25 health workers (up from 15 when launched) and 2 medical doctors (a third, female doctor is currently being recruited)
Summary: 

Jaroka Telehealthcare is currently improving the functioning of a clinic in rural Pakistan using information communication technology (ICT). Using ICT, Jaroka has established an electronic medical record system, given health care workers cell phones to let them register patients and improve diagnosis, used computers to track diseases, and more.

Key program components: 

Jaroka, which refers to a small window where light can come through and light an entire room, is currently being implemented in the Umrana Mumtaz (UM) Healthcare Trust Hospital in Mardan, Pakistan. The system consists of 5 main components:

  1. Electronic Medical Record (EMR) System. Jaroka has developed an open EMR system that is customized so that doctors in rural areas can easily use and understand it. The system uses unique smart-cards for easy patient identification.
  2. Cell phones for health workers. Jaroka has trained community health workers to use a cloud-based system (the health workers use text messages to access this system) through which they can register patients, receive assistance in diagnosis, send images to the clinic and more. Jaroka has also developed an Android application for this purpose that is icon-based so that all health workers can use it.
  3. Patient reminder messages. Patients are able to sign up to receive alerts to remind them to attend medical camps or to bring in their children for vaccinations.
  4. Connecting patients with American doctors. Through a partnership with APPNA, Jaroka shares select patient records with doctors of Pakistani-descent in the US so that they can give their advice on difficult cases. Jaroka hopes to soon launch live (video) teleconsulting. Doctors in the UK and Singapore have also been consulted.
  5. Plotting data on google maps. With the wealth of health data that it is collecting, Jaroka has begun to synthesize this information on google maps so that they can track trends of disease outbreaks, both by location and time-period occurred. This helps inform Jaroka when stocking medicines as they can predict what disease will hit at a certain time of year.

UM Healthcare Hospital charges patients based off of what they are able to pay (they use the government to identify when patients are too poor to pay at all). With this scheme, they are able to raise enough money so that they can cover all of their expenses except for the doctors' salaries, which need to be covered by donors.

When the UM Hospital can't treat a patient for a given ailment, they provide ambulance services (through an agreement with the Edhi Foundation) to transport the patients to larger hospitals in a city. This service is provided free for poor patients.

Additional Information

Hide this

Need help?

Using the CHMI Programs Database

  • Browse: Browse the database by applying one or more filters to narrow your search by characteristics. Click the "x" to remove any of the filters you've selected. Click "reset search" to remove all filters and start over.
  • Search: Search the database for a specific program by typing a name or keyword into the search box.
  • Add: If the program you're looking for is not in the CHMI database, submit the program to the CHMI pipeline by clicking here to add a program profile.
  • Update: If you notice incorrect or outdated information, or would like to help complete a profile for a CHMI pipeline program, request a change by clicking here, or at the top of the program profile.

Have a question? Check the FAQs first. Don’t see your question? Contact us.