Egypt mobile giant Mobinil, the subsidiary company of Orascom Telecom, in collaboration with Great Connection announced this week the launching of a new “Mobile Baby” platform that will deliver sonar images to pregnant women in the country. Mobile Baby, offered in Egypt by Mobinil, the country's most used mobile operator, will enable healthcare providers in clinics to transfer patients' ultrasound images wirelessly to family members and referring physicians for expert advice. “Mobile Baby is initially launched in Cairo Scan, one of Egypt's major clinics, with plans to expand the service availability to clinics and hospitals across other parts of the country, including rural regions,” the company said in a press release. The new initiative will give medical workers the ability to send ultrasound images, video clips and 3D scans directly from referring physicians for remote diagnostics. According to Khaled Bichara, Group Chief Executive Officer, Orascom Telecom, “Currently, the patient to doctor ratio in Egypt is 1 to 1,900. This disparity makes it challenging for healthcare providers to meet the healthcare needs in Egypt's rural regions, particularly pregnant women requiring pre-natal care. Mobile Baby is the first such service to be deployed in Egypt and we are proud to be launching this pilot project with Mobinil and Great Connection with encouragement from Orascom Telecom's Executive Chairman Naguib Sawiris and Dr. Paul Jacobs, Chairman and CEO of Qualcomm. In this effort, we hope to improve the health and well-being of Egypt's citizens.” Hassan Kabbani, Chief Executive Officer of Mobinil, said, “With mobile health services as part of Mobinil's strategic direction in 2012, Mobile Baby is just the start. As Egypt's leading mobile operator, Mobinil acts as the MMS gateway for Mobile Baby. Our version of the service is a novel development that helps clinics differentiate their offering by providing an additional, more cost-efficient media for sharing ultrasound images.” Commenting on this milestone, Asa Nordgren, CEO Great Connection Inc, said, “We are very excited to bring our service to Egypt in collaboration with Orascom Telecom and Mobinil. Parents in less fortunate areas deserve the same care that is available in urban centers. Both Orascom Telecom and Mobinil have been extremely innovative in bringing this service to fruition. This project is the beginning of an exciting era, where new technologies are being used to enhance the access and quality of healthcare.” BM
