B y Peter Nalika(IDG News Service ):
Telecommunication provider Orange Kenya today launched Mpedigree; an SMS based system to fight against counterfeit drugs. The company will run this programme to fight counterfeit drugs in Kenya and Cameroon where up to 30% of the drugs are potentially affected.This system will be rolled out in different healthcare centres all over the country from next week. Every drug serial number will have to be scanned through to ensure it is legitimate before it is administered to any patient. Prof. Anyang Nyong’o Kenya Minister of Medical Services says out of 174 drugs, 1 is a counterfeit, he says we must be vigilant to fight the production of counterfeit enterprises using technology.
Chief Executive Officer Mickael Ghossein said the launch of mPedigree in Kenya, is part of an ongoing strategic move that will see Orange launch a number of e-solutions that are designed to respond to market needs and offer greater convenience to customers.
“At Orange, we are driven by the need for consistent innovation and as such we consistently review the dynamic needs of the market with a view of coming up with solutions to existing and anticipated challenges. We are therefore happy to be the first to launch this service that is suited to the medical sector,” he said.
The announcement to launch mPedigree into the operations of Orange across the continent was made earlier in the year in Nairobi, following a partnership between the telecommunication services provider and the initiators of mPedigree, and comes barely two months after the government launched its flag ship e-health strategy.
Ghossein explained, “With the most advanced telecommunications infrastructure that features the highest speeds in data, we will continue to seek strategic and mutually beneficial partnerships with local and global solution providers, to offer maximum value to our customers.”
The ministry of medical services attaches great importance to the adoption of ICT, as one of the means of attaining efficiency in the running of medical institutions and in equal measure, in the enhancement of medical services, in line with the ever dynamic technological trends across the world.
“This event also comes barely two months after I launched my Ministry’s e-Health Strategy that among other things aims at helping lay the basis of the implementation of the new constitution which stipulates that each Kenyan has a right to access quality healthcare.” says Prof. Nyong’o.
Orange Kenya is already working with Qualcomm, a key driver behind next-generation mobile networks, devices, applications and services, as well as with other partners in a project dubbed ‘Wireless Reach’, that is involved in the automation of the procurement of Anti-Retroviral Drugs at public clinics.
Source: http://news.idg.no
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