Institute of Accountancy Arusha (IAA)
The Patients' Record Management System, developed by Frank Lema, 27, is expected to improve health care services for Tanzanians living in urban centres and rural areas.
Lema, who pursued Advanced Diploma in Computer Science at the institute, is one of the Arusha-based eleven ICT entrepreneurs of the Dar Technohama Business Incubator (DTBi).
DTBi is an independent autonomous entity of the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) that promotes the growth of ICT technology-based emerging companies contributing to job creation and enhanced economic health of the nation and operates as a non-profit company.
Graduated at IAA last year, the young man said his idea came after realising that many people spend long time in accessing health care services in public health facilities.
"I had a dream that one day I would come up with something which will help address the challenge in hospitals. The device intends to make medical practitioners easily attend their patients," said Lema, who hasn't undergone in any health care training.
According to Lema, the software will be installed in few public hospitals before expanding the service across the country.
"I believe, this will improve health care service delivery in the country," he said, asking for government's backup in his endeavors.
Explaining on how the technology will be working, Lema said the software will be installed in computers in every department of a particular health facility, where all information on a particular patient will be stored.
"This software will make patient's information easily accessed in all hospital departments starting at the Out Patient Department (OPD). So, a patient will be required to show their registration number to the doctor and the doctor will just work on it to get access to the patient's information," he said.
"When the doctor recommends a patient to go for testing in the hospital lab, the lab technician will also use the patient's number and get the doctor's instructions on that particular patient. And after testing, the lab findings will be seen to the doctor who can prescribe proper medicines and the pharmacist will just click the number to provide the required medicines."
"This software is intended to reduce time, bureaucracy and improve health service delivery," Lema said as he introduced his software before the Arusha-based ICT entrepreneurs.
"This is great. That is what the government wants. We want youth of this nature who can think on how to solve people's problems and in turn create job opportunities," Arumeru District Commissioner Munasa Nyirembe said, praising the young man's endeavours.
Nyirembe urges the young man to broaden the scope of his software by ensuring that it can link with a tele-medicine technology so as to serve people who are in rural areas where there is limited number of medical doctors.
"It is important to make your software provide a room for tele- medicine, whereby doctors who are in urban areas can do their job through ICT," he said, urging Tanzania's young ICT entrepreneurs to ensure they formulate companies and have property rights in their ideas.
"Be confident with what you believe. Avoid dream stealers…," the District Commissioner told Tanzanian youth.
Makange Mramba, acting chief executive officer of DTBi, said the incubator is aimed at serving as a hub for technology start- ups and actively identifies and provides for the value-added services required to support clients' success.
"Our task is to turn ideas into a profitable business. We nurture and support ICT's entrepreneurs from their early stages into strong companies as well as increase the chances of business survival by providing access to shared resources," the DTBi official said.
He reveals that DTBi facilitates access to finance and markets through credible support, guidance and business management, and networking for technical trends and opportunities to access markets.
So far, there are 41 ICT companies in Tanzania who are in pre- incubation stages, eleven are from Arusha.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
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