History

Pakistan is a developing country with contrasting geographical and economic features. The country has an annual population growth rate of 1.9% , with 65.1% of its population lives in the rural areas. The country also suffers from the unavailability of efficient healthcare infrastructure and inadequate clinical services. The complexity of the situation is further increased by the high rates of poverty and illiteracy thereby placing Pakistan in the low human development zone.

According to the Human Development Report 2007/2008, the public sector health expenditure in Pakistan is 0.4% of the GDP, which is not equitably distributed across the population. There are only 74 physicians per 100,000 people , with a concentration of healthcare facilities in the urban areas. The situation in the rural areas is worsened by factors such as scarcity of qualified doctors, unavailability of specialists, delays in the administration of proper treatment and unavailability of appropriate medications in close proximity. A median availability of 40% of essential generic drugs renders simple illnesses, such as gastroenteritis, fatal. Lack of diagnosis and medicines for treatable ailments such as Malaria, Typhoid, and Meningitis further add to the mortality rates.

Patients have reported up to 22 individual visits (with 22 transport costs, 22 patient records, etc) to obtain appropriate care. That is an enormous waste of resources, human and financial, in a country that can ill-afford it.

Some non-profit organizations have made serious attempts to fill in these gaps. However, these initiatives themselves are not sustainable.

The only way to overcome the challenges at hand is to utilize technology as a means of maximizing the available human resources combined with an effective private sector pharmaceutical distribution network.

Recognizing this, Sehat First was founded by d.o.t.z Technologies with an equity investment from the Acumen Fund.

d.o.t.z Technologies is a leading social enterprise in Pakistan developing Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) based, innovative solutions to overcome social development challenges. Company’s focus areas include Education, Health & Poverty Alleviation.

Acumen Fund is a nonprofit venture fund that invests in market-oriented approaches for delivering critical, affordable goods and services to the world's poor. Acumen Fund's efforts focus on the convergence of philanthropic capital and business expertise to produce sustainable, scalable enterprises that reach underserved markets and open access to the opportunities of the global economy.