In a move that aims to make healthcare services more accessible, Vodacom has launched a patient engagement solution in Northern Cape.
Vodacom debuted the solution today in partnership with the Northern Cape Department of Health.
The telco says the idea for the end-to-end technology solution highlights how public-private partnerships can drive innovation.
It includes SmartPatient, a smartphone app for patients needing provincial, municipal, or community-based healthcare, where they can log a medical assistance request on their phone.
In addition, it has SmartDispatch, a computer-aided system that enables users to make an emergency service request via SMS, USSD, e-mail, phone and SmartPatient.
Vodacom says with Northern Cape nurses caring for up to 40 patients each (global standards mandate it should be five to eight in a general ward), and Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe Hospital – the province’s only tertiary hospital – having experienced challenges, technology is key to cutting manual processes, tracking efficiencies and improving service delivery.
Evah Mthimunye, managing executive for Vodacom Central Region, comments: “Since 2019, Vodacom and the Northern Cape Department of Health have been hard at work to make the province’s healthcare services more accessible, and to raise the standard of public healthcare.
“Using technology as an enabler, our patient engagement solution is the first of its kind in the South African public healthcare sector, and I believe it will be a game-changer for not only the Northern Cape but for the whole country.
“It’s another example of how we are forging ahead with our purpose to connect for a better future.
“Furthermore, we believe in technology that’s accessible to the underserved and inclusive to the marginalised, and our patient engagement solution is just that.”
Riaan Strydom, acting head of the Northern Cape health department, adds: “We continue to value the philosophy of partnerships, because only if we work in unison – as one body with a common goal − will these goals be achievable.”
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