Why sell assets to treat a kin when tech is here?
The issue of what data is collected, and what’s done with it, had become much more urgent in the light of accelerated efforts to find a Covid-19 vaccine globally, but remains unaddressed locally.
What you need to know:
Health experts note that the legacy health systems in Kenyan are too expensive and inaccessible for ordinary Kenyans.
Kenyans in rural zones now urged to embrace health tech platforms which come with reduced costs for healthcare.
To help stop selling their assets to cover for health costs, Kenyans in rural zones have been urged to embrace health tech platforms which come with reduced costs for healthcare.
Speaking during the launch of the Grace Onyango Foundation in Kisumu that aims to promote the digitisation of healthcare in the country, health experts noted that the legacy health systems in Kenyan are too expensive and inaccessible for ordinary Kenyans.
“Digital health advances can help the continent jump and fast track universal healthcare access, especially to the remote and low resourced populations in Africa.” said chair of the Grace Onyango Foundation, Prof Khama Rogo.
The foundation is working alongside health insurtech firm M-Tiba, the PharmAccess Foundation, the Northwestern University and the county government of Kisumu, bringing together doctors, researchers and pharmacists in the lake regions to advance digital health interventions.
Through M-TIBA’s partnership with the Medical Credit Fund, hospitals and dispensaries are able to access financing that is collateral free with ease through a digital process on their phones, enabling them to focus on their core businesses, which in turn provides quality healthcare.
Patients, on the other hand, are able to access healthcare through their savings. M-Tiba has deployed data automation to streamline health insurance payments, and since its establishment in 2015, it has enrolled more than 4.6 million users across Africa and handled over one billion transactions through more than 4,000 healthcare providers. The platform connects health insurers with patients and medicare providers, easing transactions and boosting trust and transparency.
“Building transparency and trust in healthcare has been made possible through our technology solution. Universities, research institutions, governments, incubators, investors, digital network providers and others, play a critical role in connecting these key players to African start-ups in digital health,” said the managing director of M-Tiba Moses Kuria at the launch.
