Rethinking the Design of Low-Cost Point-of-Care Diagnostic Devices

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dc.contributor.authorKimani, Faith W.
dc.contributor.authorMwangi, Samuel M.
dc.contributor.authorKwasa, Benjamin J.
dc.contributor.authorKusow, Abdi M.
dc.contributor.authorNgugi, Benjamin K.
dc.contributor.authorChen, Jiahao
dc.contributor.authorLiu, Xinyu
dc.contributor.authorCademartiri, Rebecca
dc.contributor.authorThuo, Martin M.
dc.date.accessioned2017-12-06T06:44:24Z
dc.date.available2017-12-06T06:44:24Z
dc.date.issued2017
dc.descriptionResearch Articleen_US
dc.description.abstractReducing the global diseases burden requires effective diagnosis and treatment. In the developing world, accurate diagnosis can be the most expensive and time-consuming aspect of health care. Healthcare cost can, however, be reduced by use of affordable rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). In the developed world, low-cost RDTs are being developed in many research laboratories; however, they are not being equally adopted in the developing countries. This disconnect points to a gap in the design philosophy, where parameterization of design variables ignores the most critical component of the system, the point-of-use stakeholders (e.g., doctors, nurses and patients). Herein, we demonstrated that a general focus on reducing cost (i.e., “low-cost”), rather than efficiency and reliability is misguided by the assumption that poverty reduces the value individuals place on their well-being. A case study of clinicians in Kenya showed that “zero-cost” is a low-weight parameter for point-of-use stakeholders, while reliability and standardization are crucial. We therefore argue that a user-driven, value-addition systems-engineering approach is needed for the design of RDTs to enhance adoption and translation into the field.en_US
dc.identifier.citationMicromachines 2017, 8, 317; doi:10.3390/mi8110317en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/17904
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherMDPIen_US
dc.subjectLow costen_US
dc.subjectDiagnosticsen_US
dc.subjectTechnology adoptionen_US
dc.subjectValue-added designen_US
dc.subjectHealth careen_US
dc.subjectRapid diagnosticsen_US
dc.titleRethinking the Design of Low-Cost Point-of-Care Diagnostic Devicesen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US
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