Neo Hutiri 

Protecting health professionals and patients

Since COVID-19 cases started in South Africa, the demand for safer screening and testing of individuals has emerged.  Additionally, the temporary closure of clinics in low income communities, whenever a staff member tests positive for COVID-19, has disrupted healthcare services leaving patients on chronic treatment without a way to access their chronic medication. This is why Technovera created the ‘Pelebox COVID-19 Testing Booth’ to set up a fast and safe way for health workers to test patients at various health facilities without coming into direct contact with the patients, as well as the Pelebox Smart Lockers helps patient collect chronic treatment in without spending time in queues.

Neo Hutiri

Entrepreneur Name: Neo Hutiri, Ashoka Fellow

Organization:  Technovera 

Country:  South Africa 

Website:  www.pelebox.com 

Field of action: Frontline Health Response

Needs support to achieve greater impact in:  Fundraising and Business Development, Marketing and Communications 

The mission of the social enterprise before and after Coronavirus

Technovera is improving last-mile access to medication for chronic illnesses in South Africa by enabling the adoption of patient-empowering technologies to overcome access barriers and cultivating a more patient-centric and collaborative healthcare ecosystem.

Technovera developed Pelebox as a way to cut down the 3 hours wait times for chronic medication collection. Pelebox is an internet-enabled smart locker system that enables patients to collect their repeat chronic medication in under a minute instead of waiting hours on queues. Pre-packed medication for a particular patient is loaded into the locker, and the system then sends an SMS with a one-time-pin (OTP) to the patients. The patient would then come to a collection unit, authenticate themselves using an OTP together with their cell phone number. A locker that has their medication pops open. The smart lockers are positioned currently at the clinic and patients can quickly collect their medication at whichever time of the day they like. 

COVID-19 shook the healthcare system in Africa. Patients now have to get COVID tested before they contact with health workers. There was an immediate demand for screening and testing facilities that are fast and safe for health workers. 

Screening and testing are critical for Africa’s campaign against the COVID-19, which is why Technovera created the ‘Pelebox COVID-19 Testing Booth’. The testing booths:

  • Set up a fast and safe way for health workers to test patients at various health facilities, without having to come into direct contact with the patients.
  • Make testing safe for persons with pre-existing conditions (such as heart diseases, diabetes, respiratory conditions).
  • Reduce the amount of personal protection equipment (PPE) needed for each test, increasing the safety of healthcare professionals during the testing period.
  • Are easily transported with 30-minute setup time.

Another innovative solution by Technovera is the extension to their existing solution, Pelebox Smart Lockers that:

  • Help improve patient adherence by enabling them to collect their repeat chronic medication in under 22 seconds instead of waiting hours on queues at public clinics.
  • Leverage the power of IoT through internet-enabled smart locker devices in public healthcare to remotely track medication collection and treatment compliance while automating visibility on patient behaviour and patient outcome.
  • Keep patients from coming dangerously close in contact with other patients in long waiting queues.

The Pelebox Smart Lockers target the public healthcare sector that has the challenge of long waiting times. This issue primarily affects low income and rural citizens who can only access state healthcare. The target beneficiaries make up part of the 82% of the South African population that rely on state-funded care for treatment. This is typically someone who doesn’t have enough money to afford private medical aid and is at a higher risk with regards to COVID when collecting treatment at the clinics. Currently, 10 000 patients are using the Pelebox smart lockers per month. Ultimately, Technovera’s goal is to reach 100 000 patients per month.

Create the post-COVID world. 

Help Neo and his team develop their solution!

 Technovera‘s concrete needs facing Covid-19:

  • Replication and scaling: to scale beyond the initial 30 communities served and reach 100 communities.
  • Process Optimization and Safety: to reinforce their production safety to ensure that each COVID-19 Testing Booth that leaves the factory floor meets the highest standard for the community. Assistance needed to hire a quality assurance team.
  • Measuring & Evaluation: to consult with M&E expert to build a process for internal quality control and assurance.
  • Marketing & Communications: to build a communication strategy in line with the core objectives of the project.
  • Funding and Financing: to raise 50 000 USD to scale COVID-19 Testing Booths into 20 Communities.
SUPPORT