Our largest project to date is in the Oliver Tambo District in eastern South Africa. Working closely with the local council health department they now run more than a dozen eRangers in both urban and rural communities, supporting local hospitals and remote clinics.
The Ambulance units have supplemented the two van ambulances already being used, giving medical care teams far greater coverage and improving the response times for emergency cases.
The district's rural clinics, whose catchment areas are often large and have few tarred roads servicing its villages have, up until now, no means of motorised transport. Each unit covers a radius of about 50km, dramatically reducing the response times for critical first-aid treatment and the time it takes to get patients to either a clinic or hospital. Similar benefits have been seen in and near the urban area of the district capital, Umtata, where road accidents can now be responded to in minutes instead of hours.
The ambulance vehicles being used in the Oliver Tambo District were assembled locally in Umtata. Training, an important part of the service we can provide, was also given locally. This training includes riding skills and how to maintain the units for both efficiency and safety.
In addition to the Ambulances there are two Utility vehicles and a MediaCycle being used. The Utility vehicles have power generation and water purification equipment installed. This equipment is used by the rapid-response team developed to help in rural areas where the risk of disease especially cholera, is increased when local "fixed" water purification equipment either fails or needs general maintenance. The aim here is to help reduce the need for patient care by reducing the risk and spread of preventable diseases.
The MediaCycle is a complete mobile cinema mounted on the sidecar, with its own power supply it allows health and other education profesionals to present to both large and small audiences in rural areas. This equipment was designed in conjunction with Agri-Visual. The MediaCycle, together with other eRanger products, were handed over to Nelson Mandela and the Mayor of Oliver Tambo District at a ceremony in July 2002.
We continue to work closely with the local authorities on the best implementation and strategic planning of this and other newer projects.
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