Patients in Murang’a county will now be receiving treatment from the comfort of their homes at the click of a button.
The innovation in the health sector involves remote diagnosis and treatment of patients by the use of technology and is one of the growing concepts in the medical world.
This follows the county government of Murang’a rolling out of telemedicine services with the aim of improving service delivery in the health sector.
Telemedicine will relieve patients of the costs of travelling as they will be connected virtually with specialized doctors after they get referred from dispensaries or health centres.
The county administration is exploiting the internet infrastructure already in place in the local hospitals to pilot telemedicine services in 44 selected health facilities from September this year.
Speaking on during a telemedicine conference for county health care workers, governor Irungu Kang’ata said his administration is ready to leverage on technology and improve service delivery in the health sector.
Telemedicine, Kang’ata said is cost effective and will go a long way especially in the treatment of non-communicable and chronic diseases.
The governor said training of medical workers is ongoing adding that members of the public will also be educated on telemedicine and other technologies to maximize the benefits of these advancements.
During the conference, cutting-edge technologies including drones for medical deliveries, mobile apps for e-consultations, e-theaters and dialysis machines were showcased.
Donors also donated 200 glucometers and 50 digital tablets to support the telemedicine initiative.
“This innovation is a big step toward decentralizing medical services and embracing the future of digital health,” averred Kang’ata.
Meanwhile, Kang’ata said the challenges that have been hampering automation of the health operations will be fully handled noting he has liaised with the Ministry of Health which holds the servers of the county.
Elsmed Healthcare CEO Yaren Farachi said they will partner with the county government to ensure the telemedicine services will be rolled out effectively.
CEO of Healthx Africa, Roy Bore noted the automation of health services in Murang’a will greatly support rolling out of telemedicine services.
The technology, Bore said, is greatly used in developed nations and some countries in Africa are slowly embracing telemedicine.