From Susan Galer / SAP Marketing & Communications
In Uganda, the donation of a simple mosquito net can mean the difference between life and death to the family of Sarah Namugosa, a pregnant woman recently recovered from Malaria.
In Brazil, riders on motorbikes bring live-saving pest control solutions to isolated and typically overlooked rural and urban neighborhoods.
In other parts of Africa, healthcare workers are using advanced software algorithms to speed up diagnosis and treatment of Ebola patients. Real-time data collected on dashboards allows policymakers to quickly track the spread of the disease in real-time across villages and take steps to control outbreaks.
Spotlighted in this video, “Healthcare Check-Up: SAP on the Frontline Against Infectious Disease,” these are just some of the innovations that SAP has helped spearhead through unique public/private partnerships worldwide. The need for help is acute. Despite advances in modern medicine, infectious diseases continue taking a staggering toll. HIV/AIDs have claimed 25 million lives since 1981. Although treatable, tuberculosis and malaria persist. In 2013, infectious diseases caused over 60 percent of childhood deaths, and more than half a million children died from malaria. In 2014 the Ebola epidemic took over 8,500 lives and sickened over 21,000 people.
Technology follows the money
Eradicating deadly diseases is a widespread, complex problem that demands ongoing vigilance. For example, attracting funds and other support is only the first step for developing regions such as Africa, South America and the Caribbean. The real work lies in ensuring that donations are well-spent to make a difference in people’s lives. That’s why, as part of its US$4 million donation to the Global Fund, SAP is providing technology and consulting that directly supports the “last mile” of care in underserved places like Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Dominican Republic, Laos, Uganda, and South Africa.
Using the grant management dashboard, Global Fund managers now have real-time transparency into funds disbursement. They can track money spent versus received, ensure that teams have the drugs and supplies they need, and monitor how effectively targets are being met for antiretroviral therapy. According to Martin Kopp, General Manager of Health Care at SAP, the grant management dashboard is just the beginning of the company’s engagement to help the Global Fund fight diseases.
“We are creating a long-term sustainable relationship that will have a major impact,” he said. “As a founding member of the Global Fund’s Innovation Coalition, SAP is engaged in a multi-year effort to help organizations improve people’s health and their lives overall.”
The Innovation Coalition consists of companies from various industries, academic institutions and foundations that have banded together to support the Global Fund in fighting some of today’s deadliest but preventable and treatable diseases. The group’s first project is focused on logistics management for more effective medicine distribution.
Healthcare innovations run the gamut from the simplest low tech solutions like providing expectant mothers with mosquito nets as part of their prenatal exams to data management dashboards that help turn donations into cures. Public/private partnerships can help cut through the complexity to deliver lasting solutions for people in need. After all, the whole purpose of innovation is to change people’s lives for the better.
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