Over the last decade, key industries such as e-commerce, finance, transportation and banking among others have experienced advancement due to technology innovation. This is a different story when it comes to healthcare and care delivery in Africa.
When was the last time you visited a primary healthcare centre? Even though internet sources will convince you your symptoms are fatal, it’s still easier to research symptoms online than to get lost in Nigeria’s overcrowded healthcare system. With Nigeria’s inadequate healthcare facilities, finding an available and qualified doctor can be a hassle. North, a digital-first primary healthcare neo-clinic is solving this problem by providing hybrid (telehealth and in-person) personalised care. North is a digital-first primary healthcare provider that caters to the needs of the modern individual.
To use North’s services, users can either subscribe to an annual membership plan or pay-as-you-go. With North’s spectrum of healthcare solutions, users get access to speak to a doctor at the first sign of discomfort and get answers to all their questions at any time and from anywhere in the world. Users also get comprehensive resources and care for sexual health, everyday health issues, women’s health, including period management and pregnancy care, chronic care, mental healthcare, and preventive care. It is important to note that the membership is insurance backed to provide full healthcare coverage for subscribers as well as added experiences that traditional healthcare insurance companies do not offer. Members also have access to 1800+ healthcare providers across the country and can easily book an appointment via the platform, reach out to their care navigation specialists to support the experience and get discounts on medication. Care navigation specialists are available to guide you based on your documented history, even for chronic illnesses.
Why North? Typically, the steps to see a doctor are multilayered and can leave patients discouraged. If you get private care you can call to book an appointment and still wait at the hospital and if you’re using public services you have to take time out of your schedule to show up at a hospital to be part of the 10,000 patients your physician has to deal with in Nigeria’s ever-worsening patient-to-doctor ratio. With a population of 200 million, Nigeria has about 24,000 registered physicians leaving about one doctor available for every 10,000 patients. According to the WHO average, the number of doctors available to treat patients in a country should be a minimum of 23 doctors to 10,000 patients. Sorting through a myriad of symptoms to reach a diagnosis and the trial-and-error approach medication can sometimes leave patients disheartened and unwilling to continue seeking care. With the advent of telehealth services, access to doctors and a better quality of life are more possible for the modern individual.
North’s hybrid method of care makes seeking medical care easier as you can discuss care with a team of doctors at your convenience, get access to and control your medical records, and guidance on what to do concerning your health. With doctors always at your call, regular medical assessment becomes possible, which leads to a better quality of life for its subscribers. North also provides timely care, with the option of seeing a doctor the very next day so patients no longer need to sit through long days waiting and dealing with the anxiety and medical problems that come with delayed medical intervention.
To power their hybrid care model, North plans to own its pop up clinics but currently partners with high quality exclusively primary care clinics (Connect Clinics) in Nigeria to offer in-person and at home care services to members when required. The pop up clinics and connect clinics offer a wide range of care services required during a primary care visit such as vaccinations, in-person consultations, physical examination, pharmacy, rapid diagnostics testing and laboratory sample collection.
The North platform connects a patient to a licensed general physician in 2 minutes after submitting answers to automated sets of questions based on indicated symptoms, then a qualified physician will step in to recommend a treatment plan. This may involve physically visiting any of our Connect clinics in Lagos, Abuja, and Kano. Our hybrid experience set up facilitates data sharing between the platform and our Connect clinics, so that when the patient gets to the clinic, the attending doctor has all of the information from their virtual visit, and similarly, when the patient leaves the clinic, they can choose to do follow-ups virtually.
With membership, users of North get guaranteed help with some of the biggest obstacles to seeking healthcare — cost, finding the right provider and ease of access. North is building a health care experience that’s modern, better and impossible for the traditional health care providers to replicate. To try North today, sign up here.
