本研究主要探討資訊與通信科技（Information and Communication Technology，ICT）對於健康的影響，並採用世界銀行（World Bank）數據資料庫所提供之2000年到2009年，共10年期間、61個國家之數據進行跨國實證分析研究。變數方面，本研究所考慮的資訊與通信科技包含了網際網路、固定式電話、移動式電話；而一國健康水準之衡量則依照聯合國千禧年發展目標（MDGs）採用了預期壽命、嬰兒死亡率、五歲以下幼童死亡率、產婦死亡率、以及愛滋病病毒（HIV）感染率等指標；而在控制變數部分則依據文獻採納人均國民所得GDP、公共醫療衛生支出、都市人口比例、中等學校淨入學率等變數。研究方法上，主要是以混合最小平方法模型、固定效果模型與隨機效果模型加以分析。
本研究發現資訊與通信科技對於一個國家的健康狀況確實存在顯著影響。資訊與通信科技可以有效並顯著地降低嬰兒死亡率與五歲以下兒童死亡率，同時也可以有效且顯著地提升國家之預期壽命。此一研究結果支持了聯合國（UN）、世界衛生組織（WHO）、世界銀行與國際電信聯盟（ITU）等機構或組織的看法，皆都對資訊與通信科技在促進健康保健方面的運用、價值與潛力抱持著高度肯定的態度；也證實了McNamara (2007)、Lucas（2008）等人的推論，印證資訊與通信科技對於促進與提升健康保健體系的重要性。另外，本研究也發現通訊功能及機動性較佳的電話和手機，對於降低急症死亡的功能較大，而網際網路對於促進健康的功能則隨著時間的不斷積累其可以發揮的空間也越大。
本研究之結論可提供給發展中國家（DCs）或低度開發國家（LDCs）的執政當局一些關於資訊與通信科技和健康保健方面的政策建議，也預期資訊與通信科技終將能順利輔助各國政府達成聯合國千禧年發展目標的部分健康相關之目標。

This paper examines the impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) on health using the data of 61 countries between 2000 and 2009 from the World Bank. The ICT variables considered in this paper include internet, fixed phones, and mobile phones. Based on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of the United Nations, we select several health variables and examine the impact of ICT on these variables. These variables include life expectancy at birth, infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate, maternal mortality ratio, and prevalence of HIV. The estimation strategies are the pooling OLS model, the fixed effect model, and the random effect model.

The empirical results suggest that ICT indeed plays a significant role in improving the health level of a country. ICT effectively decreases infant mortality rates and children mortality rates, and also increases life expectancy. This finding supports the viewpoints of United Nations (UN), World Health Organization (WHO), World Bank, and International Telecommunication Union (ITU) that ICT has great potential in improving a country’s health. The finding also confirms the arguments of several literatures, including McNamara (2007) and Lucas (2008), that ICT can lead to a more effective health system. In addition, we also find that fixed phones and mobile phones, which have more powerful functions in communicating and have greater flexibility, help decrease deaths due to acute diseases or emergencies; while internet displays more profound impact on improving health with the accumulation of time.

Our results suggest that adopting and promoting ICT is an effective way for developing countries and less-developed countries to enhance the level of health of people. We also expect that ICT can help these countries to meet at least part of the Millennium Development Goals.

誌謝 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i
中文摘要 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ii
英文摘要 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- iii
目錄 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- iv
表次 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- v

第一章 研究動機與目的 --------------------------------------------------- p.01
第二章 文獻回顧 ------------------------------------------------------------ p.05
第三章 資料與研究方法 --------------------------------------------------- p.14
第一節 資料來源 -------------------------------------------------------------------- p.14
第二節 變數定義 -------------------------------------------------------------------- p.15
第三節 估計方法 -------------------------------------------------------------------- p.20
第四節 敘述性統計 ----------------------------------------------------------------- p.22
第四章 實證結果分析 ------------------------------------------------------ p.27
第一節 模型結果分析 -------------------------------------------------------------- p.27
第二節 綜合比較 -------------------------------------------------------------------- p.48
第五章 結論 ------------------------------------------------------------------ p.53

參考文獻 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- p.58

Amoss, W. P.（2002） The US/Russia Child Health Care Telemedicine Network. InfoDev project No.162-960926. Vishnevskaya-Rostropovich Foundation.

Anand, S. & Bärnighausen, T.（2004） Human resources and health outcomes-cross-country econometric study. Lancet , Volume.364, p.1603-1609.

Bend, J.（2004） Public Value and e-Health. London: Institute for Public Policy Research.

Bidani, B. & Ravallion, M.（1997） Decomposing social indicators using distributional data. Journal of Econometrics , Volume.77, No.1, p.125-139.

Gupta, S., Verhoeven, M. & Tiongson, E, R.（2002） The effectiveness of government spending on education and health care in developing and transition economies. European Journal of Political Economy , Volume.18, No.4, p.717-737.

Gupta, S., Verhoeven, M. & Tiongson, E, R.（2003） Public spending on health care and the poor. Health Economics , Volume.12, No.8, p.685-696.

Hanseth, O. & Aanestad, M.（2003） Design as bootstrapping: On the evolution of ICT networks in health care. Methods of Information in Medicine, Volume.42, No.4, p.385-391.

Hausman, J. A.（1978） Specification Tests in Econometrics. Econometrica , Volume.46, No.6, p.1251-1271.

ITU（2005） Making better access to healthcare services. Tokyo: National Institute of Information and Communications Technology.

Kahn, T.（2004） Mobile phones keep track of HIV treatments. Available at: http://www.scidev.net/en/news/mobile-phones-keep-track-of-hiv-treatments.html

Lio, Monchi and Liu, Meng-Chun（2006） ICT and Agricultural Productivity: Evidence from Cross-Country Data. Agricultural Economics , Volume. 34, p.221-228.

Lucas, H.（2008） Information and communications technology for future health systems in developing countries. Social Science & Medicine , Volume.66, p.2122-2132.

McNamara, K.（2007） Improving Health, Connecting People: The Role of ICTs in the Health Sector of Developing Countries. Working Paper , No. 1, 2007. Washington, DC: infoDev.

Micevska, M. B.（2005） Telecommunications, public health, and demand for health-related information and infrastructure. Information Technologies and International Development（ITD）, Volume.2, No.3, p.57 – 72.

Musoke, M.（2001） Simple ICTs reduce maternal mortality in rural Uganda: A telemedicine case study. Available at: http://www.medicusmundi.ch/mms/services/
bulletin/bulletin200202/kap04/16musoke.html.

Panir, M. J. H.（2011） Role of ICTs in the Health Sector in Developing Countries: A Critical Review of Literature. Journal of Health Informatics in Developing Countries, Volume.5, No.1, p.197 – 208.

Satellife（2005） Handhelds for health: Satellife’s experiences in Africa and Asia. Watertown, MA: Satellife.

UNESCAP/UNDP/ADB（2007） Achieving the Health Millennium Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific: Policies and Actions within Health Systems and Beyond. Bangkok: UN publication.

UN ICT Task Force（2003） Tools for Development: Using Information and Communications Technology to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Working Paper.

WHO（2004） e-Health for Health-care Delivery: Strategy 2004-2007. Geneva: WHO.

WHO（2006a） eHealth tools and services: Needs of the member states. Report of the WHO Global Observatory for eHealth. Geneva: WHO.

WHO（2006b） Building foundations for eHealth, Progress of Member States. Report of the WHO Global Observatory for eHealth. Geneva: WHO.

WHO（2008） Building Foundations for eHealth in Europe. Report of the WHO Global Observatory for eHealth. Geneva: WHO.

WHO（2012a） Children: reducing mortality. Media centre Fact sheet No.178. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs178/en/index.html

WHO（2012b） Maternal mortality. Media centre Fact sheet No.348. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs348/en/index.html

Wireless Internet Institute（2003） The Wireless Internet Opportunity for Developing Countries. Available at: http://www.infodev.org/en/Document.24.PDF

World Bank（2003） ICT and MDGs: A World Bank Group perspective. Washington, DC: World Bank.