The United States is the most dangerous and expensive high-income country for childbirth, especially for Black and Indigenous women. Drawing on her own pregnancy experiences, Emagine Solutions Technology co-founder and CEO Courtney Williams has developed The Journey Pregnancy app. This data-driven tool couples the power of technology with a human touch to ensure a safer and more informed pregnancy journey. Addressing Disparities in Maternal Healthcare Black women face a nine times higher risk of maternal death compared to their white counterparts, and it is not because of differences in wealth.
Helium Health, a Lagos-headquartered healthtech startup, has secured $30 million in Series B funding in the second-largest series B round for any African health tech company. Digitizing Healthcare Across Africa Founded in 2016 by Tito Ovia, Adegoke Olubusi, and Dimeji Sofowora, Helium Health has been a pioneer in is revolutionizing Africa’s healthcare sector through technology, finance, and data. The company’s suite of digital solutions includes electronic medical records, hospital management systems, insurance and billing software, and analytics tools. The company currently operates in eight countries (Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Liberia, Kenya,
As a Black medical student, Malone Mukwende was only taught to recognize clinical signs of disease on white skin. But many diseases look different on darker skin tones, leading to misdiagnosis, poor treatment, and even death. As a result, Mukwende launched BlackandBrownSkin. Through innovative tools like the Mind the Gap handbook, the Hutano app, and, most recently, the “Diagnosing Skin of Colour” digital quiz, Mukwende is revolutionizing care for Black and Brown patients. Red rashes, pale skin, blue lips “On arrival at medical school, I noticed a lack of teaching
This article was first posted in re:think Issue 3. “Disabilities can be visible and/or invisible; with invisible disabilities, there aren’t noticeable signs that someone is disabled.” — Hana Gabrielle Bidon “I was in an existential crisis when picking my major. I wanted to major in mechanical engineering when I first entered college; however, I didn’t enjoy physics, and didn’t know what to do from there.” Seeking inspiration, Bidon tried out a variety of courses: a history class, a government class, and Introduction to Computing. While considering her new path, she
London-based healthcare jobs marketplace platform, Nolea Health, has secured £1 million ($1.2 million) in seed funding to tackle mental healthcare staff shortages. The financing round was led by Frontline Ventures, with participation from Calm/Storm Ventures and other notable industry figures, including Anne Heraty, ex-CEO of CPL Resources, and Mahiben Maruthappu, CEO of Cera. Nolea Health’s platform matches mental healthcare clinicians with vacant jobs across different healthcare organizations, reducing the time taken to hire staff by up to 90% and the sourcing costs by up to 85%. Addressing the mental health crisis with
Black-owned startup Suvera has been named one of the world’s most promising digital health companies. The UK-based virtual care platform made CB Insight’s Digital Health 150 – a list of 150 companies transforming healthcare using digital technology. The 150 winners were selected from a pool of over 13,000 companies. What is Suvera? Suvera uses a dedicated remote care team and in-house technology to reduce the workload and waiting times at doctors’ clinics. From tracking blood pressure readings to administering prescriptions, the platform supports people with chronic health conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes.
Dr Renée Volny Darko isn’t your typical app developer: she’s a Black OB/GYN, and she doesn’t know how to code! However, thanks to Apps Without Code, she created MEdEq, an app which aims to help pre-meds from non-traditional backgrounds get into medical school. The financial challenges facing Black medical students In 2006, while studying as a medical student, Dr Renée Volny Darko was exposed to the difficulties intelligent and talented students often faced when trying to break into the medical industry. As someone from a non-traditional background herself, Dr Darko
Debbie Dickinson and her daughter Markea Dickinson are the dynamic duo behind the new AI-driven wristband and app, Thermaband, which uses technology to help menopausal women manage hot flashes. What is Thermaband Zone? Founded in 2019 by Debbie Dickinson and her daughter Markea Dickinson-Frasier in Miami, Florida, Thermaband aims to revolutionize women’s health, especially for those undergoing the menopause. After facing her challenges with menopause, Debbie Dickinson grew frustrated by the lack of cooling relief solutions for hot flashes. Refusing to accept thermal discomfort as a new way of life,
In a decisive move to fight against the recent overturning of Roe V. Wade, more than one hundred VC firms have come together to create VCs for Repro, a coalition of venture capital firms united in support of abortion rights. Roe v. Wade’s Impact on Black women Since the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe. V Wade law, abortion is no longer a federal right in the US. As a result, across more than half the US, many women must carry their pregnancies to term. As Black women in the
Incredible Health, an award-winning job-matching platform for nurses, has closed an $80 million Series B funding round. The latest funding round was led by Base10 Partners, including investors Andreessen Horowitz and Obvious Ventures. To date, the digital marketplace has hit a staggering $1.65 billion valuation, making its founder, Dr Iman Abuzeid, one of the very few Black female founders spearheading a unicorn company. Abuzeid founded the nurse-hiring startup in 2017 to act as the bridge between healthcare workers and industry hires, matching “the right nurse with the right role at
