The recent loss of funding in African healthcare is driving the medical fraternity to rethink solutions for accessible medical care for all Africans. On the 11th of February 2025, I spoke at the 15th Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) Annual Scientific and Health (KASH) conference. The conference is attended by senior medical professionals and policy makers from around the world speaking about the advances in precision medicine in Kenya and regionally. As a pioneer digital pathologist in Kenya, my excitement to posit opportunities and challenges with peers was clouded by the massive losses Africans are witnessing in health funding. African governments are grappling to fill these gaps, but are still slow to fully embrace the possibilities provided by digital advancements in medicine.
Grounded in this year’s theme “Research Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Health Systems: A Community Driven Agenda” the conference highlighted advances in precision and personalised medicine. It was fascinating to see this novel aspect of health sciences discussed in a time when Kenya and other African countries can leverage technological advancements and innovate in healthcare in ways we could have only dreamed of in a pre-covid world.
My rallying call during this meeting was rooted in the vital need to digitise pathology as it is revolutionising diagnosis, as well as facilitating advancements in precision and personalised medicine. With the creation of high resolution digital slides from traditional glass slides to the development of artificial intelligence software models that can read those digital slides and identify pathologies, these developments can significantly improve patient outcomes.
However, as a practising physician, I am aware that these futuristic discussions are being had against the backdrop of ailing systems that delay diagnoses for most African populations. I called on more investment in digital pathology from governments and international partners in a recent article. Readers’ responses were united in their perception of prevalent misdiagnosis in Kenya. “That’s why all patients are going to India,” a friend recently told me.
So, how do we bridge the gap between this present and the future being discussed at high level discussions such as the KEMRI KASH conference? The bottom line obviously must approximate the top level. All efforts should be applied to ensure that universal basic healthcare is a reality, and this includes educating the community about ways to live healthy lifestyles such as healthy diets, and physical activity to avoid illness.
A clear starting point is that the treatment for common infectious diseases should be accessible in our lifetimes. Malaria, tuberculosis, HIV, H-pylori must be diagnosed and treated more efficiently to save lives. Prevention must become core to our medical practice. For example, HPV (human papillomavirus), whose detection and management can go a long way to prevent debilitating incidences of cervical cancer. Health promotion as part of universal basic healthcare is an achievable and affordable goal that would go a long way to not only nurture a healthy population, but also reduce the greater investment required to diagnose and treat disease.
As we face these resource gaps, we can look into our strengths to rebuild health systems. This is a call to action for states to explore, and invest in digital infrastructure which can be much cheaper than physical restructuring. These times call for a shift in our mindsets as African healthcare workers to use digital technology to innovate cost intensive diagnostic and treatment modalities.
Dr Maureen Waithaka is a consultant pathologist at The Pathology Network.
