Mobile Health Faces a Bumpy Road in Rural California

Citing successes using cellphones to monitor health in remote corners of Africa and Asia, where mobile networks can be easier to come by than landlines, many people hope mobile technology can bolster the health of rural Americans. Adopting m-health would allow doctors to reach out through mobile phones and tablet apps to conduct examinations while such patients remain at home; track exercise, blood pressure or other metrics; send reminders to take a walk or take a pill; or deliver information to help manage chronic ailments. But spotty cellular networks in the southern Sierra create problems for people using mobile apps. In addition to loving their isolation, many can't afford a cellphone. And those who can, including the area's volunteer EMS responders, encounter dead zones.