Hunu

African parents are not able to identify the signs of autism spectrum disorders in their children early. In addition to this, there are no standardized pathways quality and affordable care and education for children who fall within the spectrum. 

Based on research, the common contributory factors are the lack of awareness of autism spectrum inaccessibility to screening tools, limited capacity development opportunities for educators and healthcare workers and limited access to therapy specialists and diagnostic services.

Hunu, which means “see” in Twi, enables African parents and providers to identify the signs of autism spectrum in children as early as 18 months old using any mobile devices. 

Using a smart messaging platform, Hunu provides parents and providers with personalized therapy support to help children identified within the autism spectrum acquire the communication and social skills they need to succeed in school and in life.

African children within the autism spectrum disorder are left behind all the time even though the Sustainable Development Goals commits to ensuring inclusive and equitable access to education for persons with disabilities. 

Research indicates that early identification of the signs of autism and diagnosis can significantly improve the developmental growth of children within the autism spectrum. Although the signs of autism can be identified in children as early as 18 months, parents do not have access to early screening and diagnosis.  The signs of autism spectrum identified in children as late as nine (9) years.

With over 10 million children in Africa within the autism spectrum, the problem is not getting any better. There is very little to no support services for parents who have children within the autism spectrum. There are very few therapy service providers in Africa. 

In addition to parents having difficulty in finding these therapy service providers, the providers can serve at most thirty (30) children at a time. This means that there are millions of children who are not getting the care they need. Without relevant and timely therapy support and expertise, children within the autism spectrum have no chance of living a happy life.

Hunu is a smart messaging platform that leverages text messaging, WhatsApp and Facebook messenger to enable parents and therapy providers to identify the signs of autism spectrum early. Hunu builds personalized communication and social skills programs for children to help them thrive in school and in life. 

Using a simple screening process, parents are able to use their mobile devices to screen children for the signs of autism and get immediate feedback on the relevant actions to take. Parents are able to chat with counselors to learn about the screening results, autism and the actions they need to take which includes a list of therapy service providers based on cost and distance metrics. 

Parents get personalized therapy programs that focus on communication and social skills that can be implemented in the home or in school. On-demand therapists are available to coach parents and educators through programs.

Hunu collects data throughout each intervention under a program and gives parents and educators simple reports to let them know the growth of children and the things they need to focus on. Educators not only get support in designing programs but get tips on building inclusive classrooms and identifying learning disabilities in other children.

Parents: Hunu serves African parents who have children within the autism spectrum. Based on data, it is estimated that there are about ten (10) million children in Sub-Saharan Africa living with autism spectrum disorder. 

Every parent wants what is best for their children and will do everything in their power to get them the best care. Hunu does exactly this for African parents and households who are living with children within the spectrum. 

By helping parents identify the signs of autism in their children as well as get access to personalized programs, their children are able to build the communication and social skills needed to thrive in life. Hunu also reduces the cost of money and time to provide their children with the right care. They can engage therapy specialists and providers right from their mobile devices.

Provider and Educators:  Hunu also thinks about providers and educators. Our solution gives providers and educators the needed support and resources from therapy specialists giving them the ability to provide quality and scalable therapy services and inclusive education respectively.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, there are significant challenges with the maternal and newborn healthcare system. Hunu focuses on developmental health of children after childbirth. The health system in Sub-Saharan does not have the capacity to identify the signs of autism spectrum after childbirth although it can be identified as early as eighteen (18) months. By the time parents take action, it is too late with children losing a significant part of their lives and opportunity to learn. Hunu’s solution and target population relates to the Maternal and Newborn Health Challenge.