Scalable mHealth Platform (MoTeCH)

Grameen Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2011

Learn more about MoTeCH

2Paths developed a highly scalable mobile technology platform available to community health organizations serving remote and vulnerable populations of the world who wish to implement a national scale mobile health system. The project was sponsored by the Grameen Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. We successfully scaled a mobile platform first tested as a pilot project. The platform continues to be available and used today.

The Client

The Grameen Foundation is a global non-profit organization based in Washington, DC that works to help poor families increase their income, build their financial security, and protect their health using innovative technology-based approaches. Launched in 2000, the Gates Foundation is a private foundation founded by Bill and Melinda Gates to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty globally.  

Building on the success of a pilot project

Funded by the Grameen Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Mobile Technology for Community Health (MoTeCH) project aims to leverage mobile technology to bring healthcare to the most remote and vulnerable populations of the world.

It started as a pilot project in Northern Ghana, MoTeCH was developed as a system to assist in maternal health through the use of cellphones. The software facilitated scheduling of care for pregnant and new mothers, as well as providing health tips via cellphones regarding immunizations and proper nutrition. Nurses could keep electronic medical records, fill out forms and retrieve patient information using cellphones. The pilot was highly successful, but the pilot system was not a scalable platform that could be deployed globally.

Scaling a mobile health platform

2Paths worked on behalf of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Grameen Foundation to build on the success of the pilot and created a highly scalable mobile platform available to organizations who wish to implement a mobile health system. The platform delivers features such as Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems, Short Message Services (SMS), and web-based systems. Organizations are able to configure and customize the platform by selecting from modules applicable to their situation, including appointment and pill reminders, a voice-message service for health-related content called Patient Outbox and systems reporting.

MoTeCH has been deployed around the world to improve maternal and child health and educate frontline workers and collect information.

Technologies used

  • Java
  • Quartz
  • MySQL
  • PostgreSQL
  • XForms
  • VoiceXML
  • VoiceGlue
  • FreePBX
  • IVR
  • Asterisk PBX
  • SMS Gateway
  • Open MRS
  • NxOpinion