Donato Tramuto, the Founder of Health eVillages,today announced that the organization has made a grant to the Lwala Community Alliance(LCA) for comprehensive Internet service that will improve connectivity between LCA clinicians in rural Kenya.The grant was announced during a visit to Lwala by Tramuto and other members of the Health eVillages team.
With this grant, LCA clinicians working in rural communities in Migori County, Kenya, will be able to communicate and consult directly with doctors at the LCA Hospital in Lwala to help them make critical decisions in the field for their patients. LCA programs focus both on treatment at the Lwala Community Hospital and prevention through health education and outreach in the surrounding communities.
Health eVillages is a program founded by Tramuto and Physicians Interactive in partnership with the not-for-profit Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice & Human Rights (RFK Center). Health eVillages provides iPod®, iPad® and other handheld devices equipped with specialized references and clinical decision support tools to improve primary and preventive healthcare in underserved areas around the world.
“Health eVillages is excited to expand our support of the Lwala Community Alliance to promote better healthcare through wellness, preventative and medical care initiatives,” said Tramuto, who is also the CEO and Chairman of Physicians Interactive. “The LCA is dedicated to providing comprehensive care to its patients throughout the region, many of whom cannot make the journey to the main clinic in Lwala. With this comprehensive Internet service, clinicians in remote rural areas are now able to communicate directly on site with doctors back at the Lwala Community Hospital to immediately discuss diagnoses and treatment options, instead of having to travel back to the hospital.”
The Lwala Community Alliance was founded in 2006 by brothers Milton Ochieng, M.D., and Fred Ochieng, M.D., to create sustainable solutions for the Lwala community. The Vanderbilt University Medical School graduates created the LCA to fulfill the vision of their late parents to build a hospital and provide healthcare for residents throughout Migori County.
LCA treats more than 1,700 people each month, with more than 1,000 residents enrolled in HIV/AIDS treatment in an area where the HIV rate is between 16 and 20 percent – nearly three times the rate of the rest of the country.
“We are honored to receive this grant from Health eVillages to improve the communications with our clinicians in the field,” said James Nardella, LCA’s Executive Director. “Due to the threats of HIV, malaria, other infectious diseases and poor sanitation, life expectancy in the region hovers just above 40 years.
With this grant, our clinicians will be able to better serve our patients in a more immediate manner in remote rural areas. This will enable the residents of Migori County to take a more proactive role in their own comprehensive well-being.”
