Author: Dr Marlon-Ralph
What you should know about the recently published MDPCZ policy on telemedicine.
COVID-19 led to a surge in telemedicine utilization. At the peak of the first wave in the US and UK, more than 90% of medical consultations were conducted through telemedicine. A digital-first approach was adopted, as it was simply not safe for patients to physically interact with their healthcare providers. Zimbabwe also witnessed a greater […]
The Digital Health Symposium is Back!
After a hiatus, the Zimbabwe Medical Association ZIMA is hosting a Digital Health Symposium on the 19th of March as a sequel to the eHealth symposium that was last held in 2019. The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic was the reason for the break in continuity. Interestingly, the pandemic is also the major reason why the […]
Opportunities presented by Zimbabwe’s rollout of a National Electronic Health Record system
Since February 2015, the Ministry of Health and Child Care with help of funding partners has been designing, developing, and testing an electronic health record (EHR) system, named “Impilo”. This is meant to reduce the current burden of paper data collection for health workers and ultimately improve the quality of care in public health facilities. […]
Review of Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare – 5 things to note
Review of Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare enteprise solution, 5 things to note for any institution looking to make it part of its healthcare delivery system.
5 things to include in Zimbabwe’s next 5-year digital health strategy
The Ministry of Health and Child Care is currently working on a digital health strategy. Here are 5 things that should be included in it.
10 things Zimbabwean startups need to consider when developing Electronic Health Record (EHR) solutions
For the effective adoption of electronic health information systems over the less convenient paper based status quo, there are key functionalities that every EHR system on the market should have. One bad apple can really spoil the whole bunch.
This is how e-Health will impact the next 5 years of medical service delivery in Zimbabwe
According to what’s been shared at the recent Zimbabwe Medical Association conference, here are 5 ways in which e-Health will be implemented to solve health-related challenges in Zimbabwe.
Here’s how ICT can develop Medical Tourism in Zimbabwe
Recently the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe hosted a discussion on the introduction of bond notes in which the Governor had to field a barrage of candid questions and comments from citizens of diverse backgrounds who were unequivocally against the bond notes. In one of his various attempts at rebuttal, Dr. Mangudya said Zimbabweans are not […]
e-Health gains momentum in Zimbabwe as doctors embrace tech to ensure basic service delivery
To face these and other challenges presented by the prevailing socioeconomic crisis, the need to change practices and incorporate new technologies in health delivery has therefore been realised by Zimbabwean health practitioners.
Survey: How do you access health information and service?
A few weeks ago we wrote about how Econet’s Dial-a-Doc service is facing headwinds with the Medical and Dental Practitioners Council of Zimbabwe. It raises some issues. The MDPCZ’s condemning of health call centers as unethical forms of medical practice effectively shuts the door to other potential players like other MNOs, internet providers, startups or independent doctors who may want to set up such businesses.
How we can capitalise on mHealth opportunities in Africa
The key to meeting this demand for innovation in health is a collaboration between health professionals and the IT experts or software developers. However, my personal experiences in Zimbabwe have been quite disappointing. It has proved to be quite a nightmare finding a skilled and experienced software developer who can choose to spare enough time to work on an idea.
Here’s how regulation of health services advertising is affecting tech startups in the sector
Judging from the list above, spam emailing or pop-up messages will not be allowed. Apart from these, there are also rules governing information put on websites, how entries in the Telephone Directory should appear and even how office signs should look! Violating these policies is a serious offense that may lead to a disciplinary hearing for the registered practitioner.
5 things to consider when building apps for the healthcare sector
The ministry of health periodically publishes the Essential Drug List of Zimbabwe. A list of medicines and standard treatment guidelines for the most common health conditions in Zimbabwe. It guides health practitioners on which drugs to use for a range of common conditions from ringworm to malaria to even psychosis. Now imagine an Essential Apps […]
5 things to remember when developing a good medical app
Faced with such a seemingly flooded medical app market, what is it that makes an app particularly worth the download? For the developers out there here is a bit of a guide into what constitutes a good medical app.
How Doctors are using WhatsApp for Telemedicine in Zimbabwe
If something is all the rage, you’re likely to see everyone falling over themselves to get their hands on it. Just look at the Scramble for Africa as an example. Fast forward to 2015 and it’s now the Scramble for Telemedicine. In Zimbabwe, several imperial corporate entities are competing against each other for a piece […]
Why and how we can set up a clinic on every mobile phone
Image credit – Higher Life Foundation Tech entrepreneurs seem to be describing a nightmare when they share accounts of when they had to deal with the regulatory authorities whilst striving to introduce tech solutions for health. Many have bemoaned the Byzantine bureaucracy of rigorous regulations that eventually lead to a shut door that can not […]
Tech medicine gadget review: A look at two self monitoring devices
High blood pressure and diabetes are the most common chronic diseases. Hence they are the target of many interventions. One example of such intervention that is facilitated by tech medicine is the use of self monitoring tools and devices. Though these devices and the accompanying software don’t replace medical practitioners, they let the patients keep […]