Medical professionals in areas where there is a scarcity of resources often have to helplessly witness as their patients suffer, mainly because they either cannot afford or cannot access specialised healthcare when they need it.
Dr Elizabeth Chebet, the Medical Superintendent at Chemolingot Sub-County Hospital in Baringo County, has seen many of her patients miss out on such specialized care as they are referred to Kabarnet, Nakuru or Eldoret.
”They will need to pay for transport, food and accommodation, as the closest of these areas is 130 kilometres. Sometimes they are left with the option of staying here,” she said.
When they manage to travel to the referral hospitals, patients are also likely to face another hurdle: the language barrier. This often means that they would need to get a relative or a friend who can speak either English or Kiswahili in order to communicate better with the specialists.
However, there is a solution to these challenges. In November 2021, the M-PESA Foundation in partnership with the Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital in Nairobi came up with a project—Daktari Smart – that connects hospitals in far-flung areas with specialists over the internet.
The Safaricom Newsroom was recently in Baringo County to see how the project is Transforming Lives.
Watch the story here:
