T-Systems, in partnership with Wayde Dreamer Foundation, donates patient management solution to Newborns Groote Schuur Trust

Issued by Evolution PR for T-Systems
Johannesburg, 23 Feb 2017

T-Systems South Africa, as part of its Nation Building Initiative and extension of its partnership with 400m world-record holder, Wayde van Niekerk, and his Wayde Dreamer Foundation, have donated a patient management solution to the Newborns Groote Schuur Trust.

The Newborns Groote Schuur Trust, an independent non-governmental organisation (NGO), was founded in 2008 and raises funds to support the work of the neonatal unit at the Groote Schuur Hospital, in Cape Town, primarily for the care and treatment of over 2 000 of the 40 000 babies born in the Metro West (Southern Peninsula) region annually.

According to Mpumi Nhlapo, Head of T-Systems South Africa's IT Portfolio and Solution Sales, this particular initiative was a natural first beneficiary of the Wayde Dreamer Foundation, being close to the heart of Van Niekerk, who was born prematurely at 29 weeks himself.

"Wayde first showed his dedication to this cause by making a generous personal donation of half a million rand to the Newborns Groote Schuur Trust," says Nhlapo. "T-Systems was very interested in where we, too, could leverage ICT to address some of the most critical points of the neonatal unit."

The neonatal unit has been using a manual system for management of communication. Particularly the tracking of patients, updating contact details, and scheduling appointments was a key concern. Keeping track of appointments and ensuring parents were notified and reminded of times and cancellations proved to be difficult, often resulting in missed appointments. While functional on a basic level, the system was allowing for inefficiencies and errors, which, in an environment where the preservation of life and eyesight is key, needed to be addressed with critical urgency.

Nhlapo describes T-System's solution: "We have implemented a patient management solution that is built on Microsoft's Dynamics CRM Online system. This solution will assist in effectively managing contact information, patient bookings, appointments, confirmations as well as generate appointment reminders for *ROP visits and neurodevelopmental clinics. Additionally, the system is capable of scheduling and managing staff standby rosters in line with set business rules, reducing the pressure on doctors and nurses and ensuring proper availability of both is catered for."

Through the use of USSD, even the parent in the most remote part of the Western Cape can be reached and reminded of an appointment. This is a good innovation in the healthcare space, something T-Systems intends to do going forward in South Africa with its broader healthcare solutions.

Speaking about this gesture, Gert Schoonbee, MD at T-Systems South Africa, said: "our involvement in this project is a natural fit, particularly when considering our motto of 'in South Africa, for South Africa'. We are proud to be involved in this initiative and, together with Wayde, are committed to contributing positively towards reducing the high mortality rate caused by complications in premature babies. We are extremely proud of the role of our partner, Microsoft, which contributed by reducing licence fees for their platforms."

* ROP is a disease of the eye that occurs in premature babies. It causes abnormal blood vessels to grow in the retina and the layer of the nerve tissue in the eye that enables us to see. The growth can cause the retina to detach from the back of the eye, leading to blindness.

Deutsche Telekom

Deutsche Telekom is one of the world's leading integrated telecommunications companies with around 151 million mobile customers, 30 million fixed-network lines and more than 17 million broadband lines (as of 31 December 2014). The group provides fixed network, mobile communications, Internet and IPTV products and services for consumers and ICT solutions for business customers and corporate customers. Deutsche Telekom is present in more than 50 countries and has approximately 228 000 employees worldwide. The group generated revenues of EUR 62.7 billion in the 2014 financial year - more than 60% of it outside Germany.

T-Systems

Deutsche Telekom considers the European business customer segment a strategic growth area. Deutsche Telekom offers small, medium-sized and multinational companies ICT solutions for an increasingly complex digital world. In addition to services from the cloud, the range of services is centred on M2M and security solutions, complementary mobile communications and fixed network products, and solutions for virtual collaboration and IT platforms, all of which form the basis for our customers' digital business models.

With approximately 47 800 employees worldwide, T-Systems generated revenue of around EUR 8.6 billion in the 2014 financial year.

Since the inception of T-Systems in South Africa in 1997, the company has cemented its position as one of the most successful T-Systems companies outside of Europe. A leading ICT outsourcing service provider locally, T-Systems offers end-to-end ICT solutions in both the ICT operations and systems integration markets. Its extensive portfolio of services covers the vertical, horizontal, IT and TC space. T-Systems South Africa's head office is located in Midrand, with another major office in Cape Town, and 20 further representative offices in locations throughout southern Africa.

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