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First integrated drone delivery solution for laboratory samples and medical supplies in Africa

1Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, Tech

First integrated drone delivery solution for laboratory samples and medical supplies in Africa

Siemens Healthineers to collaborate with German drone manufacturer and service provider Wingcopter to pilot an integrated drone delivery solution for healthcare facilities throughout Africa 2-way delivery system transporting blood samples, vaccines, and pharmaceuticals to improve access to sample analysis, accelerate diagnosis and allow faster treatment for rural communities Siemens Healthineers Middle East, Southern & Eastern Africa and Wingcopter GmbH have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop and roll out an integrated drone delivery solution to transport various laboratory diagnostics materials as well as other medical supplies in Africa. The combination of Siemens Healthineers’ Laboratory Diagnostics testing capabilities and Wingcopter’s drone delivery servic...

Investing in Innovation Africa announces its second call for applications to support African startups in healthcare supply chains

25Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, Startups

Investing in Innovation Africa announces its second call for applications to support African startups in healthcare supply chains

Applications are open for early and growth-stage health tech innovators Investing in Innovation Africa (i3), a pan-African initiative for start-ups building the future of healthcare supply chains, is calling for leading innovators to join its second cohort. Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and sponsored by AmerisourceBergen, Merck Sharpe & Dohme (MSD), Microsoft and Chemonics, i3 is supporting the commercialization of 60 promising early- and growth-stage companies. The programme connects African-led supply chain innovators to donors, industry, and government partners, to power start-ups’ growth and impact. Selected start-ups receive targeted introductions to customers to support commercialization and impact, a $50,000 grant, and tailored investment readiness support....

Fast-Tracking Universal Health Coverage in 2023: It’s time to focus on innovation and knowledge partnerships

18Feb

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Kenya News, Medicine

Fast-Tracking Universal Health Coverage in 2023: It’s time to focus on innovation and knowledge partnerships

by Basil Malaki, Knowledge Transfer Manager for Kenya at Innovate UK KTN Global Alliance Africa As the leading economy in East Africa, it is no surprise that Kenya often ranks top across several developmental indicators. In terms of economic growth, the country has maintained an annual GDP growth rate of 5% with GDP per capita almost doubling in the decade between 2010 (Ksh135,641) to 2021 (Ksh258,252)[1]. At the same time, life expectancy has increased from roughly 51 years in 2000 to about 66 years in 2018[2] with inequality slowly but surely decreasing on the Gini index[3]. Together, these indicators paint a promising picture of a state on the rise, especially when considering the vastly different growth trajectories of its neighbours such as Somalia and South Sudan. But while good pr...

Fedhealth to offer genetic testing to improve members’ health

9Feb

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, South Africa News

Fedhealth to offer genetic testing to improve members’ health

Fedhealth partners with Intelligene to offer personalised genetic testing for its members A new partnership between Fedhealth Medical Scheme and medical bio-tech company Intelligene offers exciting opportunities for genetic testing to improve the efficiency of medication, mitigate health risks by identifying possible future illnesses, and even optimise an individual’s lifestyle by pinpointing the nutrition and lifestyle best suited to their genetic make-up. While most health systems are designed to be reactive – we wait until the onset of disease and then respond – precision medicine is quickly transforming healthcare from a reactive to a much-needed proactive model. Besides finding out our predisposition to certain illnesses, personalised genetic testing can allow people to get a much m...

Trends in global healthcare shifts the focus to innovative skills development

9Nov

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, South Africa News

Trends in global healthcare shifts the focus to innovative skills development

Over the past two years, global healthcare systems have faced significant disruption and strain due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. During this time, the skills and dedication of nurses and doctors – as frontline workers – have been highlighted. These skills now face a further, possibly bigger, challenge. How do we translate these skills into an increasingly digitised world? The Fourth Industrial Revolution poses a specific and significant challenge: How do we digitise healthcare so that patients have access to quality contactless intervention? Many health practices, and hospitals, have embraced this challenge and begun migrating to hybrid healthcare models where consultations for common conditions (such as the flu, the common cold, or allergies) are done over the phone or by virtual visits (u...

21Oct

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, Medicine

The 10th annual Africa Health Conference & Congress is to be Held in Johannesburg with Focus on Digital Health and Health Technology in Africa

Johannesburg will host Africa’s largest gathering of medical and healthcare professionals next week, at Gallagher Estate. The role of digital health and health technology in achieving a sustainable health system in Africa will be one of the key themes at this year’s Africa Health Conference. This is the 10th edition of Africa Health Conference and Congress. The event will run from 26 - 28 October and is expected to draw representatives from 56 countries. Organisers have today confirmed that they have waived the fees for the various conferences that will take place at the event, as part of the 10th anniversary of Africa Health. CPD-accredited clinical and leadership conference tracks, including quality management; public health; imaging and diagnostics; healthcare management, and nur...

How AI is Transforming Paediatric Radiology in Africa

21Oct

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Main, Medicine, South Africa News

How AI is Transforming Paediatric Radiology in Africa

The 10th annual AFRICA HEALTH CONGRESS will be held at Gallagher Estate from 26-28 October. This year's Congress is expected to include representatives from 56 countries and offer free CPD conferences. A possible topic of interest at this year's event is discussed in the content below. This article looks at the reasons why African radiology professionals may be reluctant to make use of artificial intelligence in their field, including a lack of funding for AI-powered equipment and lack of training and education in the era of transformation. Concepts like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning algorithms, deep learning, and convolutional neural networks, previously the forte of the IT world, are now being applied across many sectors of the medical world as well[i]. Radiology has ...

26Sep

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, Nigeria News, Startups

30 African Startups in Healthcare Supply Chains Selected for Support from Gates Foundation, MSD, WHO-AFRO and More

The i3 program is excited to announce the selection of 30 African startups that are leading the way in innovative health solutions. These startups come from 14 different countries and are working on novel solutions for device and medicine distribution, stock management and financing, authentication, traceability, medical waste management and more. 47% of the companies are women-led, and 30% of the companies are operating in Francophone Africa. Ann Allen, Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, comments: "Digitally-enabled, locally-led innovations have huge potential to help address the challenges of access to medicines for historically unserved patients in Africa. We are thrilled to see strong women leaders at the helm of many of these startups, as we know innov...

26Sep

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Medicine, South Africa News

Vaccinations: Beyond Covid-19 Hesitancy

What are the ethical, legal and human rights considerations in preparing for future pandemics and human disasters in Africa? Pandemics constitute major public health concerns that affect the entire population, causing widespread human suffering, often requiring population-scale behavioural change, and bringing in myriad new ethical, legal, and medical practice paradigms. The past two years have been a wake-up call for nations around the world to ensure that health systems are resilient and pandemic-prepared. Africa’s primary healthcare systems must be strengthened, and part of the solution lies in robust vaccination strategies, experts say[i]. As with many other disease outbreaks, COVID-19, saw the disadvantaged in our society bearing the brunt of the effects of the pandemic, highlighti...

17Aug

By Virusha SubbanNo Comments

African News, Medicine, South Africa News

World Trade Organization waives intellectual property rights to support vaccine production in Africa

By Virusha Subban, Partner and Head of Indirect Tax, Baker McKenzie Johannesburg The World Trade Organisation (WTO) announced in June an agreement to waive the intellectual property rights that usually apply in the manufacturing of vaccines, to assist the production of COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries. The measures were proposed to the WTO by the South African and Indian governments, with other developing countries supporting the move. The waiver agreement received unanimous support from WTO member countries. The agreement by multilateral parties indicates the level of global support and potential for partnerships to enable vaccine production in Africa. The agreement means that governments in developing countries will be able to authorize the production of much needed vaccines o...