Preventing African newborn and children's deaths through proactive patient management - "Pro-Africa"

The project, “Preventing African newborn and children’s deaths through proactive patient management” or simply Pro-Africa, is a short-term consultancy project that aims to address the challenges of newborn and child deaths that occur every year.

It is reported that more than 5 million newborns and children die each year from conditions that are treatable at low costs such as late treatment due to staff shortages and a lack of suitable medical equipment to monitor and manage these children in time.

To address the challenge, GOAL3 developed a tablet-assisted patient monitoring system known as the IMPALA System.

One of the objectives of the project is to identify the necessary certifications and requirements for the monitoring system. GOAL3 will provide value-added data-driven services complementary to the IMPALA system to ensure high uptime, consistent use, and continuous quality of care improvement.

Currently, the IMPALA system is used in the EU-funded IMPALA clinical cohort in Malawi. The monitoring device has a pulse oximeter, ECG electrodes, a non-invasive blood pressure sensor, and a temperature sensor. The application enables health workers to interpret data and improve work processes rapidly.

The general objectives of the Pro-Africa project include:

1. To assess the management of a future cooperation R&I project
2. To identify the necessary certifications and requirements for the monitoring system
3. To test the usability of the patient monitoring system in the context
4. To identify the desirability of the intervention from the perspective of local stakeholders
5. To perform a small-scale demonstration project
6. To identify and select partners needed for commercialization in the target market

The project duration is six months and will be led by Ifakara Research Scientist Donat Shamba, the Principal Investigator and Project Leader in collaboration with Sengerema Hospital in Mwanza.

The project is funded by EUREKA INNOWWIDE.