Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Nov 14, 2022
Date Accepted: May 30, 2024
Digital Interventions for managing medication and healthcare service delivery in West Africa: Systematic Review
ABSTRACT
Background:
Background:
As a result of the recent advancements in technology, the incorporation of digital interventions into the healthcare system has gained a lot of attention and adoption globally. However, these interventions have not been fully adopted thereby limiting their impact on healthcare delivery in West Africa.
Objective:
Objective:
This review primarily aims at evaluating the current digital interventions for medication and healthcare delivery in West Africa. Its secondary aim is to assess the impacts of digital interventions in managing medication and healthcare service delivery with the intent of providing vital recommendations that would contribute to an excellent adoption of digital intervention tools in the healthcare space in West Africa.
Methods:
Methods:
In line with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), a comprehensive search through various databases yielded 506 results. After a rigorous screening, 29 articles which provided information on three broad digital health intervention tools were found eligible for this review.
Results:
Results:
Out of 29 studies, 16 (55%) studies examined phone-based intervention, 9 (31%) studies focused on Tele and e-based intervention and 4 (14%) studies evaluated digital-based intervention. These interventions were used for diverse purposes, some of which are: monitoring adverse drug reactions, general health, sexual and reproductive health, training of Health Care Practitioners (HCPs) and lots more. The phone-based intervention appears to be the most known and impactful of all the interventions, followed by Tele and e-based while digital-based interventions were scarcely used.
Conclusions:
Conclusion: Digital intervention has had a considerable level of impact on medication and healthcare delivery across West Africa. However, the overall impact is limited. Therefore, strategies must be developed to address the challenges limiting the use of digital intervention tools so that these tools can be fully incorporated into the healthcare space in West Africa.
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