Pic: Dr Chris Ifediora wins “ADVANCING HEALTH WITH TECHNOLOGY” Award at the Zenith’s “2022 Africa Healthcare Awards” (Lusaka, Zambia; 23/04/22)

The OCI Foundation has emerged the winner of the “ADVANCING HEALTH WITH TECHNOLOGY” at the “2022 Africa Healthcare Awards”. The event was staged on April 23, 2022, at the  by the ZENITH GLOBAL HEALTH in Lusaka, Zambia.

Zambian sources news report on the event are available HERE.

CITATION OF THE OCI FOUNDATION FOR THE AWARD

The Foundation’s technology-inspired health project is centred around its internationally-endorsed “Arm Our Youths (ArOY) Health Campaign”. The ArOY Campaign has 4 components that leverages on technology to create game-changing tools in the fight against breast and cervical cancers, allowing millions of Nigerians to be reached in sustainable, cost-effective, and all-encompassing ways. Its measures are world-first, innovative, and evidence-based. They are endorsed by the USAs Harvard Medical School, (https://youtu.be/M6xANPCtLao), the World Health Organization (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBdyf-sVE4g), and other organizations in Australia (https://youtu.be/W8gmWgQos0g), Sweden (https://youtu.be/OdN91F7EpOw) and Nigeria (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhjesiYCg_U&t=11s).

• The CerviBreast App (https://ocifoundation.org/oci-cervibreast-mobile-app/) is a free, interactive and life-saving mobile phone application that sends reminders for cervical and breast cancer screenings, thereby circumventing the reliance on the traditional recall systems found in most developed countries. Such recall systems are rare in Nigeria and other African countries, where infrastructures needed for success are poorly developed. The CerviBreast App also assists with the easy location of service providers (on breast and cervical cancer screenings, vaccinations, and treatments). This later functionality is unique, and solves the perennial problem of poor service accessibility by users from any part of Nigeria. Finally, the App has information (videos and texts) that will help provide life-saving tips and preventive techniques to every Nigerian of age. The App is 100% free, and is available on the Android and Apple stores. It is the first of its kind anywhere in the world.

• The Gynocular Project also leverages on technology to provide free and/or highly-subsidized digital cervical cancer screenings to Nigerians. It adopts the Gynocular, a state-of-the-art technology that allows usage by non-medical professionals that are supported by doctors via telemedicine. The Gynocular combines technologies for both basic screening as well as colposcopy. The OCI Foundation has already established a centre in Abuja, Nigeria (https://youtu.be/O1h_vRjV8k8 and https://youtu.be/GXy09fwlQxo), and is working on least 2 other locations this year, 2022.

• The third and fourth components adopt technology-inspired online training strategies for teachers (https://ocifoundation.org/…/the-aroy-health-campaign…/). They aim to introduce anti-breast and anti-cervical cancer teachings into the regular curriculum of all Nigerian senior secondary schools, as well as into the orientation activities of Nigeria’s National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The NYSC is the largest youths’ program in Africa, and attends to over 350,000 youths per year. On February 3, 2022, the NYSC scheme was flagged off by Nigeria’s First Lady in Abuja, Nigeria (https://tribuneonlineng.com/aisha-buhari-seeks-increased…/). The first set of corps members (over 100,000) has already been empowered (https://www.blueprint.ng/oci-foundation-begins-anti…/ and https://www.newsauthority.com.ng/100000-nysc-members-set…/).