South African medical tech startup Essential Medical Guidance, known simply as EMGuidance, won the South African leg of the Seedstars World competition at the end of June.
EMGuidance provides a mobile app, which was launched last year, allowing doctors and medical professionals to source treatment protocols for chronic conditions and information on medication that differs from region to region, according to VentureBurn.
The app therefore gives invaluable information regarding specific dosages, as well as which medicines are available and registered by the respective local medical council in a particular part of the world.
The Cape Town-based startup was founded by chief executive officer and former doctor Yaseen Khan, and co-founder Mohammed Dalwa, who has experience working for Doctors Without Borders in Afghanistan and Syria.
“Our stated aim is to improve patient care globally by ensuring medical professionals have access to the correct, locally-relevant clinical guidelines and prescribing information. We’ve created a platform for medical professionals, which supports improved clinical decision-making through providing a free, single digital access point to information,” said Khan, according to ITWeb.
“The platform creates an environment in which players within the ecosystem are able to provide contextually relevant information to help medical professionals giving treatment at the point-of-care,” he added.
The app is free for registered medical professionals to access, as the company generates revenue from pharmaceutical companies paying a monthly fee to list their medications as featured content.
The two medical doctors who started the company previously founded the Open Medicine Project, a non-profit entity providing over 300,000 healthcare professionals in 200 countries with digital healthcare info.
It is their hope that EMGuidance will motivate other healthcare stakeholders to provide the latest information for the benefit of the industry and the patients they serve in various markets.
“Since we provide a platform, there is also opportunity for other role players in the healthcare industry to contribute up-to-date information that may assist medical professionals with making better, more accurate decisions at the point of care,” Khan explained, as reported by EhealthNews.
“We believe there is a need for this type of solution at a global level, and hope to fast-track our entry to other markets over the coming months,” he concluded.
As a result of the South African medical tech startup’s victory in the SA Seedstars leg, EMGuidance will feature in Switzerland during April next year alongside 75 other global startups at the Seedstars World competition, representing South Africa and the African continent in the process.
