Congenital heart disease (CHD) is an enormous
problem in low and middle-income countries, and particularly in sub-Saharan
Africa, where children who are afflicted may struggle to receive the proper
treatment. The journal Frontiers in Pediatrics reports that there is an estimated 500,000 children born in Africa with CHD each year, with a major proportion in sub-Saharan Africa.
Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is the leading cause of acquired heart
disease and is an ongoing concern in sub-Saharan Africa, affecting especially
the younger population. Proper treatment is essential to improve the outcomes
for these children, as both conditions contribute substantially to morbidity
and mortality during infanthood and childhood. However, treatment for
conditions like CHD and RHD can be prohibitively expensive for families without
governmental or humanitarian organisations being involved.
Microsoft Israel
has been working closely with the entire healthcare industry to provide new
cloud-based solutions to meet the hospitals and HMO’s specific needs, with activities
including everything from collaboration to Data, Machine Learning and AI solutions.
The solutions provide better collaboration, facilitate remote work, making
information accessible for healthcare workers, patients and citizens, and
innovating the entire healthcare system. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there
has been a focus on providing remote work as well as remote patient care for
healthcare facilities.
With a footprint spanning over 60
countries across the Middle East and Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the
America’s, Save a Child’s
Heart (SACH)
has treated more than 5,000 children for congenital and rheumatic heart
disease. Founded by Dr Ami Cohen in 1995 at the Wolfson Medical Centre in
Holon, Israel, SACH aims to improve the quality of paediatric cardiac care for
all children; creating local centres of competence in developing countries. Working
with the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) in Tanzania, this Israeli
non-profit organisation is reaching new frontiers in the treatment and care of
children across the country.
In Tanzania, the organisation has deployed
two main modes of operation to support the diagnosis, treatment and recovery of
children who are admitted to the JKCI. After diagnosis at the Institute,
selected children and their caregivers are flown to the Wolfson Medical Centre
in Israel for final diagnosis and subsequent surgery. In these cases, the
Medical Centre’s Legacy Heritage Children’s Home, a fifteen-minute drive from
the Centre, provides both counsel and accommodation to the children, escort
nurse and their caregivers during this time. To date, 65 cardiac paediatric
patients have benefited from this programme.
For treatment in Tanzania, SACH also sends
surgeons, nurses, surgeons, anesthesia, doctors and perfusionists to the JKCI
for a months-long deployment to fast-track the surgical treatments for children
most in need. SACH also provides scholarships for nurses, surgeons, anesthesia,
doctors and perfusionists from JKCI who are going to Israel for further study.
Through these collaborations, SACH and the
Wolfson Medical Centre realised that there was an opportunity to develop a new
approach based on digital transformation to better support JKCI. The
partnership with Microsoft through the 4Afrika Initiative, initiated the
development of an exciting and innovative model for SACH operations going
forward. Through remote participation via Microsoft Teams collaboration tools
including video call, document collaboration and the security of data, the
teams envision Israeli surgeons being able to collaborate remotely and in
real-time with surgeons at the JKCI, having access to a full suite of cutting-edge
technology solutions at their fingertips during surgeries. The Microsoft Israel
team has worked closely with the Wolfson Medical Centre to deploy the solution,
implement security capabilities and provide technical guidance.
“Once implemented, this innovative
approach will allow us to help deliver more precise diagnoses, and will help to
limit the number of children needing to fly to Israel for treatment. On the
social side, there are also the added benefits for the children at JKCI, who
will be able to enjoy the comforts of familiar surroundings and family networks
in their home country,” says Dr. Lior Sasson from the Wolfson Medical Centre.
“Our surgeons are in constant contact with
our Israeli counterparts for consulting, coaching and mentorship. We are excited
that this partnership with SACH and Microsoft will allow more precise diagnosis
using remote, real-time digital collaboration tools that will immensely benefit
the children in our care. We are stepping boldly into medical collaboration in
the digital era, and we look forward to being at the leading edge of this
innovation,” Prof. Mohamed Janabi Executive Director of JKCI.
“As Microsoft, we are encouraged by the
collaboration and drive shown by the Wolfson Medical Centre and the Jakaya
Kikwete Medical Institute in the area of paediatric cardiac treatment. Being
part of their digital transformation journey is a real privilege, and we are confident
that their efforts will serve as a template for similar partnerships in other
countries, paving the way for innovation that drives collective action,” concludes
Gustavo Raiter, Business Development Lead, Microsoft 4Afrika.
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