Lying on a church pew with his arm over his head, 6-year-old Gordon Andindagaye whimpered a bit — in fear, not pain — as Dr. William A. Cherniak slowly swept a small ultrasound scanner up and down his chest.
Dr. Cherniak and Rodgers Ssekawoko Muhumuza, the Ugandan clinical officer he was training, stared at the iPhone into which the scanner was plugged, watching Gordon’s lung expand and contract.
“O.K.,” Dr. Cherniak finally said. “What do you recommend?”
Here in the west it’s easy to grow cynical towards smartphones and technology, but the impact phones and smartphones having in third world countries – which often skip desktops and laptops – is astounding.
Reminds me about some One Laptop Per Child stories, how the kids were using the device in simple and inventive ways that no one expected. For example, using the camera as a mirror, singing and recording songs and play them later like a portable music device, etc.. Unfortunately I can’t recall more examples, but it was very good. This was life changing for many. many people.
Not so great if you need a 800$ iPhone to work. The article doesn´t say if it works with cheaper phones.
Still cheaper than a real scanner, though. By yeah, smartphones are as an improvement to mankind like Gutenberg books were.
Yes, kinda strange if such a device, ~aimed at markets where Android phones are much more common, required an iPhone…