ZIMBABWE’S premier medical aid service provider Cimas Health Group has launched a project targeting the country’s top innovators in an effort to enhance healthcare services.
The project is dubbed Healthathon 2.0.
The leading private medical aid society and healthcare service provider aims to bring together a diverse group of students, professionals, and innovators to develop cutting-edge solutions addressing the most pressing challenges in the healthcare industry.
The Healthathon 2.0, event will be held under the theme, Transforming Healthcare: Pioneering Tomorrow’s Health Solutions.
The competition is also expected to serve as a dynamic platform representing a strategic opportunity where participants can showcase their creativity, technical expertise and problem-solving skills to foster innovation in healthcare, enhance partnerships and develop practical solutions for industry challenges.
The competition’s registration opened on October 14 and closes on October 24 this year.
The shortlisting process of contestants will be from October 24 to October 25 while the induction workshop has been set for October 24.
The hacking will be from October 27 to the grand finale scheduled for November 1, 2024, at Harare Institute of Technology (HIT) in the capital.
Addressing journalists, Cimas Health Group chief executive Mr Vuli Ndlovu said the healthcare services provider had partnered HIT as Zimbabwe starts to reap the benefits of the government’s Education 5.0, which is one of its five pillars.
“It has got innovation, but it’s also a belief in what our country’s education system has been able to produce and about our hope for the future in terms of how our up-and-coming innovators will be able to actually address some of the problems or some of the challenges that we face in the healthcare industry,” he said.
“So, this Healthathon event will serve as a dynamic platform to represent a strategic opportunity where participants can showcase their creativity, their technical expertise, and problem-solving skills to foster innovation in healthcare, enhance partnerships and develop practical solutions for industry challenges.”
Mr Ndlovu continued: “We, as Cimas Health Group, believe that our purpose is to inspire healthier communities by providing global standard health and wellness solutions, and this is about driving better health outcomes while managing the costs.”
He said the competition is expected to provide solutions to the practical problems that are faced in Zimbabwe.
“Healthcare in Zimbabwe, for me, is about access. It is about affordability. It is about the cost. How many people can actually access the healthcare?
“How many people can actually afford the healthcare? Are we actually reaching out as much of the community to talk about providing global standard health and wellness solutions?
The participants will have an opportunity to present their projects to a panel of industry experts and thought leaders, with the most promising ideas being recognised and rewarded.
The competition’s ultimate winner will pocket US$1 500, while those placed second and third will walk away US$1 000 and US$750 richer, respectively.
Those placed fourth and fifth will pocket US$500 and US$400, respectively.
