Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Khatun, Fatema
• Distler, Rebecca
• Rahman, Monjur
• O'Donnell, Brian
• Gachuhi, Noni
• Alwani, Manoj
• Wang, Yang
• Rahman, Anisur
• Frøen, J Frederik
• Friberg, Ingrid K

Titel

Comparison of a palm-based biometric solution with a name-based identification system in rural Bangladesh

Ist Teil von

• Global health action, 2022-12, Vol.15 (1), p.2045769-2045769

Ort / Verlag

United States: Taylor & Francis

Erscheinungsjahr

2022

Quelle

EZB Electronic Journals Library

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Unique identifiers are not universal in low- and middle-income countries. Biometric solutions have the potential to augment existing name-based searches used for identification in these settings. This paper describes a comparison of the searching accuracy of a palm-based biometric solution with a name-based database. To compare the identification of individuals between a palm-based biometric solution to a name-based District Health Information Software 2 (DHIS2) Android application, in a low-resource setting. The study was conducted in Chandpur district, Bangladesh. Trained data collectors enrolled 150 women of reproductive age into two android applications - i) a name-based DHIS2 application, and ii) a palm-based biometric solution - both run on tablets. One week after enrollment, a different research team member attempted to re-identify each enrolled woman using both systems. A single image or text-based name was used for searching at the time of re-identification. We interviewed data collectors at the end of the study. Significantly more women were successfully identified on the first attempt with a palm-based biometric application (84%) compared with the name-based DHIS2 application (61%). The proportion of identifications that required three or more attempts was similar between name-based (7%, CI 3.7-12.3) and palm-based biometric system (5%, CI: 1.9-9.4). However, the total number of attempts needed was significantly lower with the palm-based solution (mean 1.2 vs. 1.5, p < 0.001). In a group discussion, data collectors reported that the palm-based biometric identification system was both accurate and easy to use. A palm-based biometric identification system on mobile devices was found to be an easy-to-use and accurate technology for the unique identification of individuals compared to an existing name-based application. Our findings imply that palm-based biometrics on mobile devices may be the next step in establishing unique identifiers in remote and rural settings where they are currently absent.