Hard to escape my notice was the launch of Bill Gates’ new site thegatesnotes. A site dedicated to notes and thoughts he wants to share with the world at large.
So where does mobile come into this, there has to be some relevance to this blog?
In the infrequently asked questions Gates addresses the question, “should companies help the poor”.
The very obvious point he raises is that companies are there to build great products and sell them, and therefore only consumers that have money can buy them. Hence the poorest are excluded from the cycle and benefits that can be derived from the products.
He argues that companies should invest a proportion of their R&D into work that directly helps the poor, and derive the benefits that come from investing in lower cost models and markets.
So here’s the mobile link:
He suggests that communications companies could benefit by figuring out how the cell phone could help with health needs.
And there we are, he’s stepped on the holy grail of mobile. It’s an area that so far no one has successfully managed to figure out. Don’t believe me? Manchester University has even setup an M-Health Innovation Centre to act as the UK focus for such initiatives.
We are talking serious stuff here, helping people get better, improving lives. Forget all the premium rate muck that plagues the industry this is where we should be heading.
But the problem is healthcare is complex and longwinded, we all have different needs, differing ailments and issues.
Then you’ve got healthcare providers, government bodies who enshrouded themselves in an impenetrable layer of red tape.
We need to find a chink in the armour of bureaucracy, a way in. Perhaps someone who believes in the benefits so much that they help you unlock the door and guide you through the corridors to the right department.
And that’s what mediaburst have found, someone who understands what can be done with a mobile phone.
Someone who understands healthcare and can correlate the apparently unconnected.
Someone who’s drawn the parties together to collaborate and develop.
So watch this space, healthcare is coming to your mobile.
