Telemedicine support of maternal and newborn health to remote provinces of Mongolia.

The telemedicine approach is a very much relevant and effective strategy for the Mongolian context of a huge geographical area with a sparse population and huge disparities in quality and access to health services. Through this initiative, it was possible to strengthen the capacity of service providers to provide timely and appropriate care, especially to mothers with pregnancy and childbirth complications. All the way through this network, health staff had easy access to information and support from experts; this improved access to knowledge is a positive benefit of the program. The early detection of pregnancy complications and timely management with the distance consultation of an expert team had contributed significantly to the reduction of maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality in project-selected provinces compared to non-project areas. The effective use of a modern telemedicine approach has been demonstrated as being effective in addressing the remoteness and rural-urban discrepancy in the quality of health care in Mongolia.