DIALYSIS ON WHEELS

There are over 2 million people in the world undergoing dialysis treatment, this is estimated to be a 10% representation of the population requiring this life-saving treatment. The prevalence of Chronic Kidney Disease in the Sub-Saharan Africa is 14% while in Kenya it stands at 4% of the total population. While this burden is mainly left to the government facilities, the faith-based and private sectors also play a major role in delivering Dialysis to the patients. 

In October 2023 we did research in partnership with the International Development Research Center and a local University; Jomo Kenyatta University in Murang'a County, Kenya on Chronic Kidney Disease Patients. The recommendation was a Kidney Disease tool be developed and shared across the health facilities that would help inform the patients and community of prevention skills. This was done and the tool rolled out in December last year. Additionally, there was a recommendation for improved accessibility to dialysis centers within the county as patients had to cover over 40km to the dialysis centers and back. This burden would affect their health-seeking behavior. 

To mitigate this, we decided to come up with the dialysis on wheels concept which takes the dialysis to the patients easing their struggle while helping them achieve better health outcomes at no extra cost.  

For dialysis to happen, there is a need for a dialysis machine, a reverse osmosis machine that would be responsible for filtering the water required, and also a reclining seat. The machines are dependent on power, for this project, we are looking to have solar energy technology for our main energy supply as it gives the truck its independence and we also watch out to minimize our carbon footprint. 

The trucks would be fitted with solar panels on the roof that would give the necessary power output in combination with backup generators and batteries to ensure there is no interrupted power supply throughout the sessions. 

A routine assessment would happen in the morning and evening by the maintenance personnel. Then departure to the pre-mapped areas for the patients who have booked their dialysis sessions. 

The majority of those requiring dialysis are the aged in the community, in conjunction with this middle and low-income families face a challenge in facilitating the access of health facilities for their Dialysis Sessions leaving most of them in financial debt and some even missing their so desired dialysis sessions. Some patients use up to 4 hours in the commute time and another 4 in the dialysis session. This leaves about 2 days in a week being unproductive which in turn increases the financial burden to the family. 

The program through financial and geological mapping done with our experienced team of researchers and statisticians, would target patients from low socio-economic challenges and also hard-to-reach areas. 

However, the National Health Insurance fund in Kenya carters 2 dialysis sessions to each patient requiring it in a week, thus the main problem in need of address is access. We would seek verification by the National Health Insurance Fund Board to be a dialysis outlet and by so doing utilize their routine payment mode as they would in the public health/ private or Faith Based sector. 

The birth of the project came about after research was done on the affected community. After this sensitization was done through the  Community Health Promoters in partnership with the local government. This directly represents the voice of the community as feedback given through these Community Health promoters was taken into account in the development of the Kidney Disease Prevention tool. 

The project will also utilize qualified personnel locally in addition to sourcing some resources like water and waste disposal from the local facilities. We also train family caregivers who are mainly women for their loved ones with Chronic Kidney disease on the prevention practices and how to well live with their loved ones as they undergo treatment. Baseline assessment parameters are also taught to inform them when to seek help.  

Diet education is also key in ensuring the best possible outcome is achieved while there is also prevention of further risk of illness within the family unit and at large the community. 

We also help the family caregivers get employment to other families in need of the same service, this creates a source of income for them while making sure they avoid burnouts as well as maintaining a level of informed care delivery to the patients. 

In addition, we hold monthly Community Medical Camps as a way of giving back to the community. These create awareness while also solving the health issues identified in the communities for a healthier community. 

There has been a history of this project working in other nations i.e. 

Australia - the Purple Truck, Nephroplus in Delhi, and the Big Red Kidney Bus in Victoria and New South Wales, Australia. We are in the Due Diligence phase with Boehringer Ingelheim to raise funding for the project in Kenya. 

Since this is a new area in the Kenyan Medical system we would love Legal assistance in the development of a legal framework that abides by the country's laws and the WHO requirements while also not limiting the feasibility of the project into the market areas. In partnership with our legal team we should be able to come up with the best possible outcome. 

Technical input would also go a long way in informing the fabrication team, the engineering and medical staff members, and the overall maintenance of the project. Additionally, setting up the project would be capital intensive we would like to utilize your financial expertise in pointing out possible hiccups we would anticipate and how to mitigate them through your personnel and funding of the project altogether. 

Traditionally Dialysis has been done in a Brick and mortar fashion which involves machines being set in an erect structure  where patients walk in after bookings and have their dialysis session. This has its advantages and disadvantages. These areas usually have other facilities pegged onto them like wards and ICUs meaning any further help would be easily acquired. The only problem with this is the distance whereas some are favored, some are not.

This innovation will make it easily accessible to everyone at different times of the week removing the need for travel to get dialysis. To add on that it would be focused on the disadvantaged areas geographically where people have to move far, an area shall be identified that is convenient for them that is also near. 

 an evacuation system would be put in place for cases of complications this would be in contact with the referral hospital for further management, while the truck itself shall be fitted with a fully equipped emergency area with trained personnel in the case of an emergency. 

This would change the view of dialysis to the community as a terminal illness through education done in those areas as the dialysis sessions are going on, unlike the brick-and-mortar where the education only happens to the accompanying members of the society. 

This would also be the first solar-powered dialysis unit to leave an impact on the carbon footprint reduction strategy as opposed to the usual ones that solely rely on diesel-generated electricity. 

Through the ease of access, we expect the project to impact the number of patients who get dialysis as well as create revenue for the locals and the local county government. There would also be a community that is empowered in their lifestyle choices like diet, exercise, and awareness of the kidney disease risk factors. 

the women caregivers that shall be trained will not only be able to earn a living through the application of their knowledge to other families in need, but also save their families on costs incurred during the hospital visits. They also get to promote health among their families. 

Good health and wellbeing - Dialysis aim's to promote the health and wellbeing of those with chronic kidney Disease.

No poverty through the creation of employment and revenue streams. 

Reduced inequalities - through the inclusion of the less privileged in the community, the low and middle-income clients 

Through our website, we would be able to develop an automated SMS system that would remind the client of the due dialysis session and time. This would also be seen in the professional sides to assist with the planning of consumables, meals, and also availability of the dialysis slow at that scheduled time. 

Naom Monari - +254708553225

Eric Kilonzi - +254727623606

Dennis Mulimi - +254705655008

Favourite Ogeto -+25498514042

We have a total of 18 staff members that are on a fulltime basis. 

The due diligence process with Boehringer Ingelheim has now been on for 5 months. 

we are also in the same process with Madiro  for 3 months now.  

At Bena Care, we believe in creating an all-inclusive environment for our employees and also clients. In respect to this, we have a blend of personnel from different cultures, locations, and beliefs making up our team. With the majority being the women in the executive 18 members of staff, 8 are men. 

This gives us a blend of opinions during the decision-making process as everyone is involved in the process. We are Driven by our main goal of reducing the cost of health while also upholding the standards of service delivered to our patients in the comfort of their homes. We also have objectives set out at the beginning of every month over our progress reporting meeting where we point out stressors and areas of improvement within the cooperation. 

In our service delivery, we approach every client with compassion, understanding, and an open mind, this enables us to provide a patient-oriented type of care regardless of their socio-economic background, religious beliefs, and cultural practices.  

Through this project, we look forward to sourcing both nephrology nurses and Blue collar personnel from the local community as a way of including them in achieving the success of the daily dialysis activities. We also promote career growth among our staff members to make sure there is career growth and a good work environment. 

Our main aim is to reduce the healthcare costs for families. On average, the hospitals charge an average of $75 per day.  We charge  $15  per day, delivering comprehensive care to our patients. Of this charge, 70% goes to the remuneration of the healthcare personnel involved who are usually locally sourced, and 30% goes to the Company. Through mapping and geographical classification of our personnel, we can allocate them nurses/ nurse assistants within their locality this has proven to improve the outcome of the patient-nurse interaction due to the cultural and social understanding amongst them. 

Primarily women are responsible for taking care of the family and ailing loved ones in Kenya. With the lack of formal training this care delivery leaves them burnt out due to uninformed know-how on execution of the tasks. This also affects the quality of care delivered to the patients.  At Benacare, we have done family caregiver Training which empowers the women to deliver informed care that eventually improves the quality of care, we only come in to do service monitoring at a subsidized fee of $ 2  to ensure the trained standards are upheld. Among the aspects covered in training are but not limited to  Blood Pressure taking and recording, Blood Glucose ranges, and taking and recording.  

We also attach the family caregivers to families in need of their services upon recovery of their family members, this becomes a source of revenue for them while also ensuring the standard of care is upheld for better health outcomes in the community. 

We also hold monthly free screening medical camps. In the utilization of our advertisement budget, we redirect it towards the resources and personnel needed for the free screening and brand awareness. Among the services offered are cervical and Breast cancer screening, physician consultation, triage,  and drug dispensation. We have attended to over 69, 000 people through these free screenings. 

Bena Care is a self-sustainable venture, Our main aim is to reduce the healthcare costs to families. On average, the hospitals charge an average of $75 per day.  We charge  $15  per day, delivering comprehensive care to our patients. Of this charge, 70% goes to the remuneration of the healthcare personnel involved and 30% goes to the Company this amounts to 75 % of our total revenue.  We also sell/ lease out healthcare equipment like hospital beds, oxygen concentrators, and Wheelchairs that account for 25% of our revenue. This also helps in the comprehensive care delivery to our patients. 

For scalability, we have raised funds through grants, and convertible notes, and for this recent venture(Dialysis on Wheels) we are in the Due Diligence Phase of raising capital with Boehringer Ingelheim. 

Previously raised Capital: Grants 

Villgro Africa - $50,000 

I3 - $50,000

IDRC - 180,000 CAD 

Global Citizen - $50,000

Village Capital - $75,000 convertible NOTE

Standard Chartered Women In Tech - $10,000 Award

The National Health Insurance Fund, Carters for 2 dialysis sessions in a week at $95 per session, for every dialysis patient under the scheme, this is the main mode of payment for most dialysis units in the country. For sustainability, we shall be registering the unit as a hospital and getting approval from the NHIF as a service point. In addition, we shall be rolling out the Diabetes prevention tool from the unit as a way of informing the community of their lifestyle changes through the Community Health Volunteers, we are aiming at 2000 individuals to benefit from this prevention tool monthly.