Mobile application development for health empowerment in rural áreas

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic made visible the profound inequities in health and the need to develop collective intelligence networks to address the social determinants that influence infectious diseases and guarantee the right to health. Additionally, numerous studies indicate that the social determinants
of health are responsible for 30 to 55% of health outcomes (1,2). This project aims to contribute to community epidemiological monitoring, comprehensive health risk management, and community empowerment, articulated with the training of youth leaders in health and mediated by the development
and collective use of a mobile application. The development of the application follows the modeling of the orientation of technologies by specific objectives and the methodology of mobile applications (3). The construction began in November 2020 with the definition of requirements through user story
design and the backend system development. Subsequently, the functionality tests were carried out, and the follow-up is underway to identify the problematic aspects and the specific needs of the rural population of Puerto Wilches, Santander. A staggered launch architecture was built with the modules
of community interaction, health issues, monitoring of prioritized health conditions, and remote orientation with family medicine and public health professionals from the University of Santander, articulated with the youth leaders trained within the project. So far, the project has trained 20 youth
community health leaders from Puerto Wilches in a participatory way and has linked 11 teachers, 33 family doctors in training, and 114 medical students from the University of Santander, in-person and online. The main health problems identified by the youth leaders were the consumption of tobacco
and psychoactive substances, environmental pollution, and sexually transmitted diseases. Based on the community health prioritization, the contents of the mobile application and the health education activity are being adjusted by community leaders. Additionally, information regarding community-based monitoring mobile mediated and tele-orientation is being collected. Within the results it is expected to increase community participation and empowerment and reduce access gaps to tele-orientation in health. In addition, we expect to articulate the activities with the network of service providers in the
region and the health authority to promote social protection of the rural population of Puerto Wilches, contributing to the fulfillment of the Colombian Ten-Year Public Health Plan of and Sustainable Development Goals.