By Modupe Gbadeyanka
An arm of Interswitch Group, eClat Healthcare Limited, has partnered with the Edo State government for the delivery of quality healthcare to residents of the state through technology and innovation.
Founder and CEO of Interswitch, Mr Mitchell Elegbe, stated that, “Following our recent acquisition of eClat Healthcare, we’re delighted to partner with Edo State to provide better healthcare services through its bespoke healthcare technology platform.
“Interswitch’s ambition is to use our innovative technology to modernise and improve efficiency in economic sectors such as healthcare, which are crucial for Africa’s social and economic development, as well as serve as catalyst in the activation of Nigeria HealthTech Industry over the next few decades.”
Special Assistant on Media and Communication Strategy to Edo State Governor, Mr Crusoe Osagie, noted that, “The state government has recorded a number of achievements in the health sector, which includes rehabilitation of primary healthcare centres in the 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state; enactment of the compulsory Health Insurance Law to reduce out-of-pocket expenses on healthcare and the repair and opening of the Edo Specialist Hospital.”
The Edo State government recently launched a compulsory healthcare insurance scheme, under the direction of Governor Godwin Obaseki. This came after the first phase of disbursement of the BHCPF (Basic Healthcare Provision Fund) to states through the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). The scheme is geared towards delivering affordable and accessible healthcare services to residents state-wide.
The initiative is managed under the Edo State Health Improvement Programme (Edo-HIP) setup to undertake the national government-led drive for Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Edo-HIP is a series of government-led interventions aimed at increasing access to efficient, effective and sustainable quality healthcare services with the central focus of improving the health status and well-being of citizens of Edo State.
Founded in 2012, eClat specializes in assisting healthcare service providers in planning, designing and operating their unique practices through the deployment of its bespoke healthcare technology platform, designed specifically for the healthcare environment in Africa.
eClat is transforming the quality of healthcare by providing modern, essential resource tools to care providers and increasing their efficiency and saving costs. eClat will utilise its flagship primary healthcare health management system, ‘eClinic’, to significantly enhance healthcare delivery for Edo State.
Other key initiatives under the partnership include: Healthcare facility renovation, Process Optimization/Transformation, Training & capacity building and Health Insurance.
Already, eClat has been allocated a number of Primary Healthcare Centres across the state to refurbish and manage. eClat will assist with the migration of existing medical records/data from paper form into electronic form (using eClat’s eClinic software); as well as upskill medical staff to enable them effectively to deploy and manage the new solutions. eClat has also been mandated to drive enrolment and active participation of citizens in the Health Insurance Programme.
Adedapo Adesanya 
Aduragbemi Omiyale