There are a number of reasons for setting up Africa eHealth Foundation. Africa eHealth Foundation fills a gap. Until its closure in 2015, the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) advised African health organizations about ICT, data management, telemedicine, Learning and performance improvement in health care. This support was important and was often carried out with the Christian branch organizations and hospitals. The gap that IICD left has so far not been filled by any other organization.
Secondly, there are many Dutch doctors and hospitals who volunteer to help patients in Africa for a few weeks in the year. For example, by performing specialized operations, providing training and donating materials. The impact of this assistance can be leveraged by providing digital support organized through Africa eHealth Foundation logistics. If a hospital has a system like AfyaPro, a Dutch doctor can assist from a distance based on receiving accurate patient information and utilizing tele-medicine facilities. Management improvements can also be followed up remotely, because data is digitally available. Further improvement will be achieved if these initiatives are integrated into a growth and change program ̶ a transformation path – for the hospital.
Thirdly, it is the wish of VitalHealth Software that its Corporate Social Responsibility Donation is well utilized and that a part of the outcome of Africa eHealth will flow back into Africa eHealth Foundation in order to create a sustainable support structure for eHealth in Africa. For this reason, Africa eHealth Foundation has acquired 25% of Africa eHealth’s shares and is responsible for monitoring the progress of Africa eHealth Solution’s social impact mission, i.e. providing affordable quality care for all. The primary objective of Africa eHealth Foundation is to support health care in Africa through knowledge sharing, fundraising and the realization of development projects that boost health care by using ICT.