Daktari Smart, a telemedicine programme run by Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital, Gertrude’s Hospital Foundation, and the M-PESA Foundation, aims to reach and treat at least 32,400 children in five counties in the initial phase.
In the next five years, Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital, and its Foundation target to impact 5 million children in the region, and directly provide care for 45,000 children suffering from rare and complex non-communicable diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Since its launch in 2021, the Daktari Smart initiative has reached 10,000 children with specialised paediatric medical care. The programme provides services in Narok, Samburu, Baringo, Homa Bay, and Lamu counties.
A 2022 study, The health workforce status in the WHO African Region: findings of a cross-sectional study published in the BMJ Global Health, found that with an average of 13.8 healthcare workers per 10,000 people, Kenya has significantly fewer professionals in the healthcare sector than the WHO’s recommended 44.5 doctors, nurses and midwives for every 10,000 people. This leads to difficulties in accessing healthcare services especially considering the ratio increases when it comes to specialists.
The Daktari Smart telemedicine kit comprises electronic medical devices such as the Electronic Stethoscope, Vital Signs Monitor, Derma Scope Camera, Ultrasound Machine, inner ear observing Otoscope, and Electrocardiogram (ECG) to check heart rhythm and electrical activity.
