@ppcheti
Lamu county has launched the Daktari Smart initiative, a programme that uses telemedicine technology to link and treat children.
The three-year initiative by M-Pesa Foundation and Gertrude’s Hospital Foundation targets over 32,000 children in Lamu, Samburu, Homabay, and Baringo.
In Lamu, the launch was held at the Mpeketoni Subcounty Hospital on Thursday.
It will reduce the number of referrals of sick children by allowing county health facilities to access specialists to attend to sick children.
The kit has electronic medical devices such as the Electronic Stethoscope, Vital Signs Monitor, Derma scope Camera, Ultrasound Machine, Otoscope for examining the condition of the ear canal and eardrum and the electrocardiogram- to check the heart’s rhythm and electrical activity.
The initiative will optimize the capacity and reach of healthcare delivery systems by helping bridge the gap of access to healthcare services in Lamu.
M-PESA Foundation has committed over Sh168 million towards the initiative while Gertrude’s Hospital Foundation will invest over Sh35 million in the next three years.
Speaking at the event, Safaricom’s Head of Sustainable Business and Social Impact, Karen Basiye said through the initiative, doctors in Lamu will connect with their counterparts at the Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital for specialist medical advice.
This will reduce patient referrals, save on costs and increase prompt treatments.
“Patients in Lamu have to be referred to Mombasa and sometimes it’s too little, too late. Daktari Smart will address that,” Basiye said.
Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board, says the doctor to patient ratio in the country currently stands at about one doctor for every 6,355 people which makes it difficult to access qualified medical professionals.
The ratio increases when it comes to specialists with details revealing that the participating counties in the programme have either one or no paediatricians.
Daktari Smart will enable community health volunteers, social workers, and health workers in the county to benefit from video conferencing training to build their skills and capacity.
Unlike the conventional video conferencing, Daktari Smart allows the health care worker at the local partner health facilities, to place the electronic medical devices such as a stethoscope or vital signs monitor on the patient.
The specialist at Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital will then be able to see the patient and hear the sounds in real-time without the interpretation from the health worker at the local facility.
The bandwidth requirement for the equipment is low, ranging from 512Kbps to 2Mbps which means the platform can be installed in rural and underserved areas that do not have fibre connectivity.
Screens will be used for video conferencing to facilitate regular capacity building for over 300 health workers serving in the rural health facilities and training of 360 social workers and community health volunteers- in the local community who will support social mobilization.
Gertrude’s Hospital Foundation chairperson, Les Baillie said the mission is to transform communities by improving access to quality healthcare services to needy and disadvantaged children in the country.
“This involves embracing innovation, technology and research. The Daktari Smart programme will enable us to provide specialist care to children in far-flung areas and develop appropriate data and information to support pediatric healthcare in the country,” Baillie said.
Lamu health executive, Anne Gathoni who is a paediatrician said the initiative was crucial and timely.
“We are happy that through such an initiative, children who need pediatric consultation will access the services from where they will be,” Gathoni said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
