KENYA – Biospectal SA, the remote patient monitoring and biosensing software company, and Amref Health Africa have kickstarted a Mobile Remote Patient Monitoring (MRPM) hypertension management pilot program in Kibera, Nairobi, Kenya.
The pilot program launched in Kibera, the largest informal settlement in Africa, focuses on making hypertension monitoring and management more accessible in a bid to curb the growing burden of heart diseases.
The strategic partnership between Biospectal and Amref Health Africa aims to address the silent killer at a time when only one in five people worldwide afflicted with hypertension has the disease under control.
In addition, the first-of-its-kind partnership will enable Biospectal to build upon the four independent World Health Organization validation studies it currently has in progress in South Africa, Tanzania, Bangladesh and Indonesia.
The collaboration will also allow the biosensing software company to scale the impact of Biospectal’s OptiBP™ smartphone-based, blood pressure solution across Africa.
Biospectal’s OptiBP medical-grade mobile app uses a smartphone camera’s optical lens to measure and record a user’s blood pressure via their fingertip.
“With the ease and availability of Biospectal OptiBP, anyone in the world with a smartphone can turn their device into a connected, smart, clinical-grade monitor in the time it takes to download and install an app,” the company said in an official statement.
Biospectal Chief Executive Officer Eliott Jones underscored that Biospectal’s remote monitoring software puts easy, accurate and intelligent blood pressure monitoring at the literal fingertips of people around the world.
“We are thrilled to be working with Amref, whose reach amplifies our ability to pursue our mission to help solve the global hypertension epidemic. Amref’s expertise combined with Biospectal’s technology will enable us to make a huge stride in increasing access to hypertension care,” he concluded.
Head of Venture Developments and Partnerships at Amref Health Africa Peter Waiganjo emphasized that digital transformation in health care is rapidly reaching a tipping point in providing increased access in high income settings.
He stressed that technologies like Biospectal’s OptiBP blood pressure monitoring platform unlock that promise of health access for low income countries, specifically here in Kibera.
“Amref has made a commitment to work in line with the WHO Global NCD Action Plan and Kenya’s Ministry of Health National Strategy for the prevention and Control of NCDs,” Peter noted.
He further said that the latest partnership deal is a step towards empowering communities, integrating health services, and implementing a multi-sector policy for change.
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