Mobile phones are becoming a popular device to reach out to target population worldwide.

In this post, Mobiles for health – American Style, Corinne Ramey gives three examples of how mobile phones are used in America to  reach out for target population for health related information.

1. Case 1: In the state of Georgia, mobile phones are being used to monitor the health of diabetes patients. The study participants sent glucose readings and photos of the meals they ate. Professor Elizabeth Mynatt, director of GVU Center of the Georgia Institute of Technology said, “You can ask people what they have for breakfast, and it sounds healthy, but then you see the proportions on the plate, and not so much.”

2. Case 2: Internet Sexuality Information Services, Inc (ISIS), a California-based nonprofit focused on sexual health has been using text messaging campaigns such as SEXINFO and HOOKUP for providing sexual health-related information to people.

3. In Phoenix, Arizona, which is the ninth-most ozone polluted city in America, residents are using mobile phones to keep track of air quality. The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) sends out “high pollution” alerts to its 900 text message subscribers.

In Africa, Katrin Verclas writes in her post “Rapid Response, a m-health Platform” that a m-health platform on RapidSMS has been developed for the Millennium Villages Project with support from the UNICEF Innovation Group. The program is used by health care providers in the field to facilitate and coordinate activities through SMS text messages.

Research Articles on mobile phones and youth -

1. Mobile Phone usage among college students in America – Aoki & Downes (2003)

2. Cross-cultural comparison of perceptions and uses of mobile telephones among college students – Campbell (2007) (full text)

3. Mobile phone usage and social networks among young Russian adults – Gladarev & Lonkila (2008)

4. Gender differences in social networking through mobile phones among Japanese college students – Igarashi, Takai, & Yaoshida (2005)

5. Comparison of Internet and mobile phone usage among Japanese and Taiwanese youth – Ishii & Wu (2006)

6. Use of mobile phones as fashion items among Japanese and American college students – Katz & Sugiyama (2006)

7. Gratifications sought by college students in Hong Kong from pager use – Leung & Wei (1998)

8. Social meaning behind adoption of mobile phones by teens in Norway – Ling (2007)

9. Mobile phone usage among Norwegian youth – Ling (2007)

10. What is the appropriate age for children and young people to adopt mobile phones – Ling & Helmersen (2000)

11. Mobile phones as an object of fashion and personal display among teens in Norway – Ling (2001)

12. The diffusion of mobile phones among youth in Norway – Ling (2001)

13. The impact of mobile phones on parental and peer relationships of teens in Norway – Ling & Yttri (2003)

14. Mobile Communication culture among Finnish teenagers and its implications for social interaction - Oksman & Turtiainen (2004)

15. Issues concerning new communication technologies and youth – Thurlow & McKay (2003)

16. Youth culture and cell phone branding in China – Wang (2005)

17. Gratifications of cell phone use among college students in Taiwan – Wei & Lo (2006)

18. Use of mobile phones by teens in South Korea  – Yoon (2003)