AI to improve healthcare, Medicines stock outs and medical equipment shortages in Rwanda’s health facilities are now a thing of the past, thanks to an innovation that addresses procurement restrictions.
Vibig Technologies, a venture capital-backed health technology company, is helping expand access to affordable healthcare in Central and East Africa by helping healthcare facilities purchase supplies in real time. It uses AI to manage supply chain operations (from shipping to warehousing, distribution and inventory management) to ensure healthcare facilities have accurate medical supplies in stock. The Rwanda Innovation Fund, partly funded by the African Development Bank, invested in the data-driven logistics platform FIBIG. AI to improve healthcare, The company’s AI-powered medical procurement platform directly connects healthcare providers with manufacturers, says co-founder and CEO of Vebig Technologies, Tobias Reiter. This removes middlemen from the value chain, achieving cost savings of up to 40 percent for customers. “We’ve seen that many medical facilities lack proper supplies, and we’ve also noticed from reports that, every five minutes, people in Africa die from conditions that could be prevented if we had the right medical supplies,” he added. AI to improve healthcare, The company, which was founded in 2018, works with several health facilities in Rwanda, where two million people have been treated with Vipeg products, according to Vipeg’s co-founder and chief commercial officer, Alex Musyoka. It currently has successes in other parts of East Africa, including Kenya, Burundi and Congo, serving more than 500 facilities. Musyoka says the company plans to expand across Africa. Many healthcare facilities in Rwanda value what VEBIG is doing, as they can now find essential products for their specific fields at affordable prices. An example is the Kivu Specialized Clinic, established by Dr. Amol Kulkarni, one of the three maxillofacial surgeons in Rwanda. Modern equipment is of paramount importance for professionals treating oral and maxillofacial defects and injuries, but it is often unaffordable in Africa. Dr. Amol said Vibeg helped his clinic obtain an orthopedic machine (panoramic dental x-rays of the upper and lower jaw), thus enhancing its cutting-edge capability. “In four months, the clinic will have paid in full for the new OPG machine.
We are considered one of the best equipped clinics in Rwanda. Fibig helped me set up my clinic, and now I am confident that the company will be my partner to maintain it.” Likewise, the Ejo Heza Surgical Center in Kigali needed a new anesthesia machine as the old one was broken. But they did not have the funds to buy a new one. “Since Vebig offers special payment terms for products, this center became a customer of the company, and received the new equipment within three weeks. This allowed our facility to continue saving lives,” says Dr. Dominique Savio Mugenzi, an orthopedic surgeon and managing director of this center. AI to improve healthcare, “Thanks to the company’s service, we are now procuring medical supplies and equipment through the platform, and this has led to a significant reduction in purchasing costs and out-of-stocks of medical supplies,” adds Mugenzi. “I was very sick, but with the gynecological machines here, the doctors were finally able to diagnose the problem. Now I am improving after four surgical sessions. I am grateful for these services,” said Mokando Cesari, a patient who experienced the power of a well-equipped healthcare facility thanks to Vibeg’s innovations. She also expressed satisfaction with the attention she received at the Best Care Hospital in Kigali in July 2022. She previously underwent a 10-hour surgery at a local hospital, but her condition worsened because the facility lacked the equipment to accurately diagnose her. Fibig’s annual revenue rose from $80,000 to $180,000 after six months of funding from the Rwanda Innovation Fund, representing a growth of 125 percent. Musyoka expects the figure to rise to $2.5 million by the end of 2022. Apart from improving revenues, the funding has enabled the company, among other things, to conduct training for its employees, obtain working capital, and hire more workers. It is reported that the African Development Bank invested $30 million in the Rwanda Innovation Fund. The Bank’s support is in line with the Third National Information Communication Infrastructure Plan, which emphasizes the importance of information and communication technology in improving the provision of services to citizens. “Digital innovation can transform sectors, but it needs investment. Vibeg is a great example of what can be achieved with the right mix of innovation, entrepreneurship and financial support,” said the Bank’s Director of Industrial and Commercial Development, Dr. Abdo Mukhtar. It is well known that the Rwandan Innovation Fund, which Initiated by the Rwandan government and partially funded by the African Development Bank, it has been a catalyst in the development of this company. Local investment in local businesses has achieved transformative local results. This is a model of a partnership that can be built well in other markets.”
Source: This news is originally published by africa