Healthcare firm rolls out innovation to enhance efficiency

A healthcare technology firm has rolled out innovations to enhance efficiency and access to quality health services across the country.

The innovations by Smart Applications International which include the Comprehensive Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) and smart access mobile application target to ensure patients are processed and treated in record time at over 4,600 facilities spread across the country. 

The mobile application facilitates easy identification of patients covered by medical insurance or corporate cover aiding in quick access of services.

Smart Applications Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Harrison Muiru said the innovation, was a build-up on the biometric identification infrastructure which the company has rolled out across the country.

He added that the smart access platform is fast and efficient and will save facilities time wasted calling insurance companies to verify the details of beneficiaries.

The service, he added was also available through a USSD code for patients who don’t have smartphones.

When patients visit a facility, he said, the hospital is immediately able to establish which services to offer them based on the contract parameters they have with the insurer.

“We have been in this sector for over 20 years now. We are impressed by the government’s commitment to scale up E-Health and as a company, we shall continue to develop solutions that are patient-centred,” he said.

Speaking during the inaugural Health Service Providers Summit in Kisumu, Muiru said the smart access system was set to enhance consistency in medical records to enhance better treatment outcomes.

Smart Systems International Head of product delivery and Support Purity Njagi said through the mobile application principal beneficiaries who hitherto had to physically appear at a facility to authorize other members to get services will do so on the applications and share a generated short code to facilitate the process.

“Most mothers leave their children with caregivers and when they fall sick they are forced to return home to take them to hospital. However with this application enables them to authorize the service on their mobile phones and share the code with the caregivers to access services at a health facility,” she said.

Head of Hospital Operations Ester Macharia said the firm was working with health facilities to enhance efficiency in their processes to improve patient experience.

In line with this, she added the company has developed a Comprehensive Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) to revolutionize healthcare administration.

The system, she disclosed manages point-to-point operations of health facilities alongside stocks and financial records to ensure efficiency in their operations.