South African Healthcare Tech Firm showcases the importance of sharing knowledge and best practices across borders to improve global health outcomes. Picture: Maewh/Freepik
For the past decade, Vantage Health Technologies, part of the South Africa-headquartered BroadReach Group, has been using AI-driven solutions to address some of the continent’s most pressing healthcare challenges, such as the lack of access and overburdened healthcare systems.
Now, Vantage Health Technologies is taking its groundbreaking African AI solutions to the United States to enhance access to quality cancer care by helping oncology providers address complex health equity issues, particularly around social determinants of health.
According to Ruan Viljoen, Chief Technology Officer at Vantage, their team doesn't just provide raw data but they translate it into actionable insights, offering healthcare providers the "next best action" to address gaps in treatment.
"This allows medical teams to focus on priority patients and gaps in treatment and move scarce resources to where the biggest impact is needed," says Viljoen.
For instance, in an HIV clinic, a doctor no longer has to spend time interpreting complex data.
Instead, they receive recommendations on what actions to take next to improve health outcomes, ensuring a more efficient and impactful use of resources, Viljoen continued to explain.
Vantage's innovative approach is now being applied to the US healthcare system through the company’s SocialHealth360 solution.
The solution enables healthcare providers to take a holistic approach to patient care, ensuring that the factors affecting a patient’s ability to stay on cancer treatment are addressed in real time.
This application of AI to cancer care is particularly significant in the US, where health inequity remains a major issue.
Issues such as food insecurity, transportation challenges, and poor living conditions if not addressed, often prevent patients from accessing or staying on cancer treatment, even when it is available.
The collaboration between Vantage Health Technologies and US oncology providers illustrates how healthcare innovations developed in one part of the world can have a profound impact globally.
Dr. John Sargent, co-founder of BroadReach Group, says, “An example of impact through collaboration is using our experience and learnings in Africa addressing health inequity and applying them to promote health equity in cancer care in the US.”
“Although every geography and market has its differences, many of the same core principles, critical lessons learned, and approaches apply, allowing us to rapidly adapt and implement solutions that have a real impact for populations in need,” adds Sargent.