Dejan Zurovac|G. Otieno|Samuel Kigen|Agneta Mbithi|Alex Muturi|Robert W. Snow|Andrew Nyandigisi
Ownership and use of mobile phones among health workers, caregivers of sick children and adult patients in Kenya: cross-sectional national survey
Kenya Medical Research Institute|Kenya Medical Research Institute|Ministry of Health|Ministry of Health|Partners for Health and Development in Africa|University of Oxford|Ministry of Health
rapid growth mobile phone penetration use short message service sms seen potential solution improve medical public health practice africa several studies shown effectiveness sms interventions improve health workers practices patients adherence medications availability health facility commodities inform policy makers feasibility facilitybased sms interventions coverage data mobile phone ownership sms use among health workers patients needed 2012 national crosssectional cluster sample survey undertaken 172 public health facilities kenya outpatient health workers caregivers sick children adult patients interviewed main outcomes personal ownership mobile phones use sms among phone owners predictors analysis examined factors influencing phone ownership sms use analysis included 219 health workers 1177 patients respondents 767 caregivers 410 adult patients health workers possessed personal mobile phones 986 used sms among patients respondents 612 owned phones 714 phone owners used sms phone ownership sms use similar caregivers sick children adult patients respondents male educated literate living urban area significantly likely phone use sms youngest respondents less likely phones however phones owned younger age groups likely use sms respondents living wealthier areas likely phones however phones owned significant association poverty sms use observed mobile phone ownership sms use ubiquitous among kenyan health workers public sector among patients serve coverage phone ownership sms use lower disparities exist respect gender age education literacy urbanization poverty disparities sms use addressed modalities mhealth interventions enhanced implementation processes growth mobile phone penetration needed reduce ownership gap