The Use of Touch‐Screen Technology for Health‐Related Information in Indigenous Communities: Some Economic Issues

The low health status of indigenous communities in Australia, and other countries, has been a continuing societal problem. One way to improve health status involves the provision of health‐related information. Computer‐based systems offer new ways to provide such information: thus their application can be seen as process innovations. This paper describes the use of touch‐screen technology to present health information in a culturally relevant fashion for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Queensland, Australia. Touch‐screen kiosks incorporate both computer hardware and software. The paper also outlines some of the key economic concepts relevant to an economic analysis of an information system employing touch‐screen technology. It is shown that the economic analysis involves a two‐stage process, and it is somewhat more complex than setting up an Internet website.

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