The clinical trial for the digital biometric management system study for newborns in Kwale has been extended to two more facilities.
Researchers from Kenya Medical Research Institute have been piloting the system at Kinango Sub-county Hospital.
Kemri has announced the trials will now be extended to Diana Healthcare and Kwale sub-county hospital.
“The clinical trial which has since been expanded to two other facilities will have a big impact on improving health systems in the country and contribute to the government's agenda of Universal Healthcare Coverage,” Kemri’s Acting DG Elijah Songok said.
The system was developed in partnership with NEC Corporation and Nagasaki University in Japan.
It is expected to effectively and seamlessly manage vaccination history and scheduling using fingerprint identification for newborn children and voice recognition for caregivers.
According to Kemri, the system uses NEC technology to classify fingerprint images collected from four fingers of a newborn into five categories according to the shape of each and then registers the fingerprint pattern data.
The four include the left thumb, right thumb, left index finger, and right index finger.
The system also combines pattern-based classification with NEC's voice recognition to improve accuracy when verifying the identity of caregivers and newborns.
Kemri said the initial results from a clinical trial that began in September last year have shown very encouraging results.
The system is also expected to support policy and action towards the attainment of better health outcomes and Universal Health Coverage.
