Despite the rising number of e-health start ups in Africa, a majority
are not mobile phone first, says a recent study. FILE PHOTO | NMG
ICT use in healthcare provision in Africa is not actually
mobile-first despite the number of e-health start-ups accelerating, a
new report released last week shows.
This is contrary
to popular assumptions that a majority of them do leverage on use of
mobile gadgets to reach their target audience.
Start-ups
tracked in the High Tech Health: Exploring the African E-health Startup
Ecosystem Report 2017, revealed that only 44 per cent of the e-health
ventures sampled are mobile-based despite popular belief in the power of
the gadget to reach those in far-flung areas of the continent.
Kenya,
Nigeria and South Africa are early hotspots for e-health entrepreneurs,
but research shows a rise in start-ups with substantial communities of
e-health innovators emerging in Uganda, Ghana, Egypt and Senegal.
The
report examined data on e-health start-ups across 20 countries in
Africa gathered by Disrupt Africa - a firm that studies continent’s tech
start-ups and investments initiatives - between January 2015 and
September 2017.
The research found 115 firms active in Africa but that not all opted for the mobile phone as a first choice.
Its
findings showed that a majority do not necessarily choose phones as a
delivery channel, but Kenyan start-ups still do prefer the device, with
73 per cent of these using mobile them to reach their customers.
Areas where mobile delivery is particularly crucial include maternal health and emergency responses.
“This
is a timely piece of research, as more and more e-health ventures enter
the market and investors take note. We all know that digital health
start-ups are playing a pivotal role in increasing access to quality
healthcare across Africa, but for the first time this report gives an
oversight of what is happening, where, and the form innovation is taking
in the health space,” said Tom Jackson, co-founder of Disrupt Africa.
In the last three years, Africa’s e-health start-ups have raised investment in excess of Sh1.957 billion ($19 million).
In
Kenya, four have managed to raise Sh39.098 million ($379,600). Two of
these, Totohealth and SophieBot, managed two funding rounds each. The
other two to raise funding are ConnectMed and Deaf Elimu.
Ventures
such as Totohealth uses the mobile technology to help reduce maternal
and child mortality and detect developmental abnormalities in early
stages.
The platform enables mothers and fathers to
receive targeted and personalised messages timed at their child’s age or
stage of pregnancy.
These messages are able to
highlight any warning signs in a child’s health/development, equip them
with knowledge on nutrition, reproductive health, parenting and
developmental stimulation.
Another venture SophieBot,
is a mobile application that tackles the issue of young people not being
able to access verified and curated information around sexual and
reproductive health (SRH).
The solution helps relieve
the awkwardness surrounding discussions and discourse SRH, particularly
in the conservative African setting.
Healthcare
professionals say telemedicine, e-health and m-health are examples of
disruptive technologies that can effectively and affordably deliver
healthcare services to the most remote areas of the continent.
Some
solutions allow patients to access consultations with medical
professionals via video link. Licensed practitioners are available for
same-day consultations, and can provide prescriptions, sick-notes, and
referrals. For doctors, the service allows them more flexibility and
control over their work hours.
According to this year’s
Kenya’s economic survey report, there has been an upward trend in most
of the ICT indicators over the last five years.
Mobile-cellular
penetration rate, internet and mobile money subscriptions stood at 85.9
per cent, 58.8 per cent and 70.5 per cent in 2016 from 85.4 per cent,
54.2 per cent and 60.6 per cent in 2015.
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