The need for cost-benefit analyses of eHealth in low and middle-income countries

Cost and benefit analyses are crucial for eHealth interventions, especially in low and middle income countries (LMIC). We performed a scoping review, with goals to acquire an overview of cost-benefit studies and to collect indicators that are being used for costs and savings with respect to eHealth. Of all retrieved articles, 29 were included in our analysis and 21 contained cost/savings indicators which we categorized into outcome measures with respect to providers, patients and other stakeholders. Nearly all authors stated that more evidence from economic analyses by health economists are urgently needed and that pilot projects should collect cost related data for evaluation.