Healthcare Analytics

AAFC Launches EASE® Healthcare Program in Ghana With FOCOS Orthopedic Hospital

AAFC Launches EASE® Healthcare

EASE® Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of African Asset Finance Company that provides state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment “as-a-service” to healthcare organizations, announces the signing of its first customer. The contract, which marks the launch of the EASE® Healthcare program in Ghana, will see the installation of a Siemens CT scanner in the Accra facility of FOCOS Orthopedic Hospital.

“We are thrilled to announce this deal to bring a new, best-in-class CT scanner to one of Ghana’s leading healthcare providers,” said Kanyinsola Oyeyinka, AAFC’s VP Healthcare, Africa, responsible for AAFC’s EASE® Healthcare program across the continent.

“The EASE® Healthcare program will support medical organisations across Africa in delivering the highest possible standard of health provision to their patients, and we are pleased to count FOCOS Hospital as one of our first customers.”

Imraan Soomra, Chief Operations Officer of AAFC, added: “The Healthcare program is a significant element in our wider EASE® initiative, enabling customers to utilise best-in-class equipment they would otherwise be unable to access, benefiting organizations and their users.”

In recent years, FOCOS Orthopedic Hospital has undergone a period of significant growth in clinic attendance. Between 2020 and 2022, the number of patients rose 60% year-on-year to over 11,000 – a figure that continues to rise.

Through EASE® Ghana’s pay-per-scan service, the hospital will now be able to meet this increasing demand without facing exorbitant up-front costs – instead meeting the capital expense of its new Siemens CT scanner through cashflows generated in the use of the equipment itself.

“Our pay-per-use model ensures that healthcare providers like FOCOS are able to access the highest quality equipment, whilst also benefiting from maintenance provision, operator training and ongoing support,” said Anita Appiah, EASE® Ghana's Business Development Manager.

Dr Wulff, CEO of FOCOS Hospital commented: “With EASE, we're able to access first-rate diagnostic equipment for the hospital. This new scanner will add to our market-leading healthcare provision, enabling us to deliver an even higher quality of service to an even greater number of patients.”

Dr Bernt Bieber, Senior Vice President, Siemens Healthineers comments: “The EASE program aligns with our purpose of making healthcare available to everyone, no matter where they live, and could meaningfully change the way healthcare is administered and accessed in the growing African market. We are excited to be part of it!"

EASE® Ghana will upgrade FOCOS Hospital’s existing, non-functioning CT scanner with a new and upgraded CT from Siemens Healthineers (Somatom Go. Up CT 64 slice model). This new scanner will allow the hospital to significantly increase its daily exam volumes, boosting its ability to meet the needs of its patients without technical constraints on how many patients can be examined on a daily basis.

About EASE®

EASE® is an AAFC program that provides access to high-quality equipment – including maintenance, training and support – to businesses and organizations across Africa, allowing them to pay for the use of the equipment with the cashflows the equipment itself helps to generate.

Spotlight

Other News
Health Technology

Verily Introduces Viewpoint Workbench to Boost Biomedical Research

Verily | October 09, 2023

Verily, an Alphabet subsidiary focused on precision health technology, has unveiled Viewpoint Workbench, a new enterprise-grade platform created to consolidate multimodal data and expedite biomedical research. Workbench offers a secure collaborative setting for data generators, researchers, and biopharmaceutical organizations to oversee and analyze their data. This platform is a component of Verily Viewpoint, a comprehensive suite of solutions that enable the generation of evidence necessary for expediting the availability of safe and effective therapies to individuals in need. Scott Burke, Chief Technology Officer, Verily, said, Researchers are gathering more data of more types than ever, but it is challenging to effectively store, access, and analyze it while complying with data governance mandates. [Source – Business Wire] Scott Burke added that Workbench can adapt to any organization and helps researchers use data to advance scientific understanding. Workbench integrates technology and optimal methodologies honed over several years of constructing data infrastructure for extensive research undertakings, including National Institutes of Health's All of Us Research Program, Accelerating Medicines Partnership Parkinson's Disease (AMP PD) program, and Project Baseline Health Study. Dr. James Lu, MD, Ph.D., CEO and Co-Founder of Helix, emphasized the importance of a platform that can effectively integrate multiple data layers to advance their work significantly. He expressed enthusiasm about integrating Verily's Workbench, which will facilitate collaborative research and yield more informed insights. Additionally, Manish Raisinghani, MBBS, Ph.D., President and CEO of Target ALS, stressed the need to maintain momentum in accelerating ALS drug discovery. He mentioned that Workbench aligns with their ambitious initiative to create a comprehensive biosample and dataset collection for ALS and to provide unrestricted access to scientists worldwide, thus promoting progress in their research endeavors. Workbench enables secure collaboration among data generators, research sponsors, and biomedical researchers. Users can analyze multimodal data, ensure data governance through access control, and engage with a growing network of researchers to advance scientific progress and promote reproducible research. About Verily Verily, an Alphabet health technology company, specializes in research, healthcare delivery, and health financing. Its mission is to advance precision health and promote healthier lives by operating at the intersection of technology, data science, and healthcare. The company develops tools to accelerate evidence generation, creates products for more personalized care, and introduces approaches to enhance cost predictability.

Read More

Health Technology

ShiftKey Extends Its Tech Solutions to Embrace Acute Care Facilities

ShiftKey | September 15, 2023

ShiftKey, a leading technological enterprise at the forefront of reshaping the future of workforce engagement, has officially announced its expansion into acute healthcare facilities. ShiftKey's technology, data resources, and talent marketplace are set to be accessible to acute care facilities in Kansas, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas. This expansion addresses workforce-related challenges and enhances patients' access to top-tier healthcare services. Furthermore, the technology has already undergone beta testing at acute care facilities in Alabama, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Carolina, and West Virginia. CEO of ShiftKey, Mike Vitek, characterized the company's foray into the acute care sector as a pivotal step in its platform and business development. He emphasized the organization's vantage point on healthcare staffing challenges and expressed optimism regarding the potential alleviation of strain on acute care facilities and healthcare professionals. Meanwhile, Brandon Tappan, Chief Revenue Officer at ShiftKey, added that the escalating workforce challenges confronting healthcare facilities have become an annual trend. The departure of nurses from acute care facilities in large numbers underscores the imperative for a novel approach to address staffing needs within institutions serving vulnerable populations. Integrating ShiftKey's technology into acute care facilities represents establishing an independent healthcare staffing solution. This initiative aims to reinvigorate and safeguard this vital industry by enabling individuals to rejoin the workforce on their terms. About ShiftKey ShiftKey is a technological enterprise dedicated to transforming workforce access and integrity. Employing data and a marketplace model, the company facilitates connections between independent licensed professionals and facilities with workforce requirements. It is pivotal in advancing empowered labor, stability, and solutions for professionals, institutions, and beneficiaries. With a platform encompassing 10,000 healthcare facilities and myriad independently licensed professionals, ShiftKey is one of the foremost leaders in strategic workforce solutions, catalyzing a more sustainable, inclusive, and prosperous workforce economy for the years ahead.

Read More

Health Technology

Crothall and Beyond Clean Revolutionize Sterile Processing Education

Beyond Clean | September 07, 2023

Two prominent entities in the sterile processing industry, Crothall Healthcare and Beyond Clean, have entered into a strategic partnership to develop an innovative educational curriculum specially designed for sterile processing professionals serving in hospitals throughout the United States. This partnership leverages both organizations' collective wealth of knowledge and extensive experience to empower sterile processing professionals with state-of-the-art expertise, enhance patient safety, and elevate the overall benchmarks for sterile processing industry-wide. Afif Escheik, BA, CHL, CER, CIS, CRCST, CST, Regional Director of Operations at Crothall Healthcare, expressed that this partnership will enhance the company's capacity to provide sterile processing professionals with the educational tools necessary to meet and exceed industry standards, reduce errors, and optimize productivity. Crothall's track record of achievement in the field of sterile processing has been founded upon its stringent, data-centric methodologies, which have led to a remarkable enhancement in audit compliance of nearly 90%, a substantial reduction in process errors of up to 50%, and significant productivity gains of up to 62%. Through this collaboration, Crothall intends to incorporate these invaluable insights into developing the forthcoming curriculum. Hank Balch, Founder and President of Beyond Clean, remarked that this partnership will help elevate the standard of sterile processing in the United States, significantly impacting patient safety and quality of service. The collaborative curriculum is adaptable for various care settings, promoting sustainable, high-value care, enhancing patient safety, and reducing errors across the healthcare organization. This partnership signifies a significant step towards a safer and more efficient future in surgical services. About Crothall Healthcare With more than three decades of experience in the healthcare sector, Crothall Healthcare is the foremost provider of patient-centered support services, offering comprehensive solutions tailored to diverse care settings. Its sterile processing services integrate extensive healthcare expertise, clinical rigor, and industry best practices to deliver efficient and highly effective services. About Beyond Clean Beyond Clean is a global expert in sterilizing educational content. The company's unwavering commitment to sterile processing motivates it to empower frontline professionals with essential knowledge, education, and steadfast assistance. It also enables them to uphold impeccable standards and ensure the continuous cleanliness of all instruments.

Read More

Health Technology, Digital Healthcare

Montage Health Launches Innovative At-Home Patient Monitoring Service

Montage Health | September 22, 2023

Montage Health Connected Care has launched an advanced service to enhance the quality and accessibility of healthcare for patients. This home-based patient monitoring service, supported by Cadence, is designed to offer proactive healthcare to individuals managing chronic medical conditions. Dr. Mark Carvalho, Chief Executive Officer of Montage Medical Group, explained that the program lessens the need for emergency department visits by extending care directly to patients' homes. He emphasized that this approach offers mutual advantages for patients and healthcare providers. Patients can gain access to an expanded care team from the comfort of their homes. At the same time, he added that clinicians will benefit from improved insights into disease progression and receive support from a nurse-practitioner-led care team, ultimately enhancing patient safety. Montage Health's advanced remote care initiative represents a significant progression in its dedication to providing exceptional, personalized, value-based healthcare tailored to individual needs and objectives. This program combines cutting-edge remote monitoring technology with a clinical care team under the direction of nurse practitioners to enable real-time collection, analysis, and response to patients' vital signs. It will support patients with medication management, laboratory assessments, and coaching to ensure outstanding healthcare and promote optimal well-being. The process involves the daily use of smart devices for remote vital sign monitoring and remote care telephone consultations involving a diverse healthcare team. Chris Altchek, CEO and Founder of Cadence said, Montage Health exemplifies best-in-class preventative, restorative, and coordinated care with their strong track record of innovative programs and collaborative partnerships. [Source – Business Wire] Medicare beneficiaries will gain access to this offering at Montage Medical Group locations, resulting in reduced healthcare costs. This will also empower healthcare professionals to provide patients with better, more effective care. About Montage Health Montage Health is a local non-profit organization that delivers exceptional healthcare and promotes optimal health. The company strives to provide coordinated care that meets individual needs through its subsidiaries and partnerships with healthcare providers and community organizations. Its entities include Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, Montage Medical Group, Montage Health Foundation, Montage Wellness Center, Aspire Health, and MoGo Urgent Care. About Cadence Cadence is a healthcare technology firm that assists the most patient-focused healthcare systems in consistently delivering proactive healthcare. The company's remote patient intervention solution blends technology and clinical expertise to deliver a tailored and precise standard of care that extends beyond the hospital's physical boundaries.

Read More