Tackling the Challenges of Health Care in Nigeria Using Tech and Design

Estimated to have one doctor for every 5000 people, the healthcare system in many Sub-Saharan African nations are understaffed, underfunded, and ill-equipped to meet the needs of their current population, let alone the growing one. 

Historically, the elite, from business to politics, have gotten around it by traveling abroad to Europe for treatment, leaving the multitude to hang in the balance. Many argue that Africa needs to build a conventional, capital intensive healthcare system.

However, similar to skipping the desktop era and going straight to mobile, many African countries will leapfrog the need to develop traditional infrastructures by harnessing technological innovation. Companies will create cheap, easily accessible solutions that won't require an abundance of resources to solve — demonstrated in Tanzania, where Zipline is delivering blood products and medical supplies via drones.

The future of healthcare in Africa is not in capital investment; it's innovation. Through digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence, VR/AR, 3D printing, robotics, and nanotechnology, healthcare systems will include everything from remote medical care to on-demand healthcare services.

Expected to launch its digital products Aegle and Yoda in summer 2020, Teamgrace Healthcare is a health and medical services company. On a quest to improve lives and upgrade the health system across Africa through meaningful technological innovation. 

I spoke with Buhari Jemilu, the UX/UI Designer behind Teamgrace Healthcare and it's two digital solutions Aegle and Yoda, about building meaningful products, the challenges of creating a frictionless UX/UI, and Tech in Africa.

Explain what the product is designed to do and what value it provides to the marketplace?

Teamgrace is a healthcare startup that is launching two products this year called Aegle and Yoda.

Aegle:

Aegle is a telemedicine platform where users can schedule an appointment and talk to a doctor using their mobile phones. The platform gives users the option of calling a doctor via voice call, video call, chat, and a home visit. The first product we are launching is the mobile app. However, you will also be able to book an appointment using the Aegle dashboard, your laptop, desktop, iPad, or any internet-enabled device.  

What's unique about Aegle is the AI feature, you can tell the app the symptoms you're feeling, and it will give you solutions to improve your health. The AI feature is not limited to physical health conditions, but also includes a mental assessment part where you can tell the app how you're feeling mentally. 

The platform has a forum, similar to Facebook and Twitter, where you can read other Aegle member's posts and comments. Doctors, like users, are allowed to post and share content. The forum is where the community of Aegle users will meet and discuss health-related topics.  

Yoda:

Yoda is a platform where users can set up medication reminders. When it's time to take your medication or before, the app will send a notification. There will also be pharmacies registered on the platform to allow users to order their medicine and have it delivered to their homes. 

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced during the design/ development process?

Creating the user story and user journey was the biggest challenge. I did several one-on-one interviews with doctors, health practitioners, and potential customers. While creating the user story and journey, the client kept coming up with new ideas that he wanted to implement. This was my first healthcare design project, so the challenge was getting the right information from the client. 

I'm also the product manager of this project, so I did the UI/UX but also oversaw the development. It was a bit challenging to get the right people to work on the project. I started with two people then I had to replace them with another set of developers. Now we have a front-end and back-end developer working on the project.