The BBC published an interesting article, including videos, looking at how mobile phones might become a platform for healthcare services, particularly in developing countries. The piece features comments from MIT’s Professor Ramesh Raskar and UCLA’s Professor Aydogan Ozcan.

Raskar is working on a clip-on gadget for phones which allows users to easily determine their own prescription for eyesight problems. Ozcan is focusing on an accessory which can search for bacteria and microbes in fluid samples.

As we prepare for MEX Pathway #5, entitled ‘Create best practice for the user experience of mobile health services at the next MEX event on 30 Nov – 01 Dec, the BBC report prompts us to rethink how existing products can be retrofitted with medical technology to bring affordable and usable healthcare to the largest number of users.