Gradian Named a Finalist for “Saving Lives at Birth”
We’re excited to announce that Gradian has been selected as a finalist for the Saving Lives at Birth (SL@B) award led by the Gates Foundation and the governments of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Norway and Korea. After a few rounds of applications and interviews – up against more than 550 participants – we’re one of 10 finalists for SL@B’s ‘Transition to Scale’ awards. The final phase of the contest will take place next week (July 26 & 27) at the DevelopmentXChange in Washington, DC.
Our proposal, “Improving Surgical & Obstetric Care in Zambia through Reliable Anesthesia Technology & Specialized Training”, was submitted with support from the Zambian Ministry of Health and leadership from our Zambian partners: Society of Anesthetists of Zambia (SAZ), Sonergy Diagnostics, Tropical Health and Education Trust (THET), and Churches Health Association of Zambia (CHAZ). If successful, this program would install our flagship UAM at 33 district and regional hospitals across four provinces in Zambia. Coupled with machine installation, SL@B funding would cover comprehensive capacity building for anesthesia providers – with a curriculum developed and led by SAZ – and capacity building for biomedical equipment technicians (BMETs) in each region, led by THET. Our local distribution partner, Sonergy, will manage many parts of this process including the UAM installations, BMET trainings and our 3-year warranty.
Why Zambia?
Zambia is a prime example of a low-income country facing challenges in access to safe surgical and anesthesia care: 80% of its population lives more than two hours away from essential surgical and obstetric care, less than a quarter of the country has access to reliable electricity, there’s a sparse physician population in rural communities and a poor supply of medical oxygen.
But it’s also the first country in the world to develop a National Surgical, Obstetric and Anaesthesia Strategic Plan (NSOASP), which was released this year specifically to improve that access. We recognized that this newfound political will – along with extreme need and Gradian’s years of experience working in the country – offered a unique opportunity to contribute to some early successes for the new policy. We’re excited about the opportunity and invite you to vote for our project here!