JAYFORCE

Photograph by Katrin Koenning, article by John Tozzi, for Bloomberg Businessweek.

Here is a frustrating problem: Pneumonia, though treatable with antibiotics, kills more children than any other cause (mostly in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa), according to the World Health Organization.

Enter the problem-solver! Hon Weng Chong, a 24-year-old student at Melbourne (Australia) Medical School, has developed a quick way to diagnose children in areas where health care is scarce. He’s built a stethoscope that can plug into a smartphone and doesn’t require medical training to use. Unfortunately, for now, there is a lack of speedy networks and smartphones in the areas of need. Sad… and the same problem exists in rural/poor locales in MANY countries (like my own, the United States). But imagine if we could overcome this obstacle… lots of diagnoses and prescribed treatments could be done doctor-free (talk about healthcare reform)… high-blood pressure, urinary tract infections… all kinds of one-test-one-pill situations. Improved health outcomes the world over… DONE!

– @ojones1

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