Elevating Healthcare Through Innovation: COVID-19's Impetus for Technological Advancements in Africa
The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled numerous African nations to foster technological innovations within their healthcare sectors. In the year 2020 alone, Africa witnessed the creation of more than 120 health-tech advancements.
According to WHO Africa, a significant portion—57.8%—of these healthcare technologies emerged from the realm of ICT industries. Promising business avenues include smartphone connectivity, data infrastructure, and mobile financing, among others. An illustrative example is the World Health Partners (WHP), which relocated from India to East Africa, now emphasizing remote diagnosis solutions. The driving force behind such services is the progressive evolution of mobile technology.
Doctor undertakes a TeleHealth Appointment
“Telehealth is poised to grow into big business in Africa, with home-grown and imported start-ups offering child and maternal health education, remote diagnosis, prescription services and more.” - Ochieng’ Ogodo
This surge in health tech industries opens up substantial opportunities for startups. For instance, a startup named Helium Health has effectively served a multitude of doctors through its Electronic Health Record Systems (EHRs). The potential markets for such innovations are vast, encompassing countries like Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Rwanda, and South Africa. Notably, Africa Healthtech Summit is scheduled to convene in Rwanda from 17-19 October this year, serving as a platform to discuss the unfolding potential of healthcare technology across the continent.
Digital technologies have the potential to optimize medical resource utilization within hospitals and enable more precise decision-making by doctors. McKinsey & Company, a global consulting firm specializing in African technology development, asserts, "Wider adoption of teleconsultations could reduce emergency admissions, enhance chronic-disease management, and broaden access to care."
Despite the rapid growth of ICT industries in recent years, access to digitized medical services remains a challenge for many Africans. Dr. Landry Signé, a senior expert at the Brookings Institution's Africa Growth Initiative, affirms that "Internet access gaps hinder citizens from fully benefiting from online services, hamper economic growth, constrain Africa's global engagement, and lead to skewed data collection." Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, an eminent infectious disease specialist from Shufflex Biomed, underscores that the lack of support and research funding from African governments poses a significant hurdle for local digital technology advancements.
To expedite progress, African nations could forge collaborations with regional and international partners instead of pursuing isolated efforts. Dr. Landry Signé, a distinguished fellow at Stanford University's Center for African Studies, suggests this collective approach as a means of enhancing infrastructure and accelerating advancement. In the future, Australian health-tech enterprises have a promising opportunity to collaborate with African organizations, pioneering transformative markets across the continent.