DZ-Urge

DZ-Urge: together for better healthcare emergency assistance

Alger, AlgeriaAlger, Algeria

Year Founded:

2015

Organization type:

nonprofit/ngo/citizen sector

Project Stage:

Idea

Budget:

$1,000 - $10,000

Website:

https://dzurge.wordpress.com/

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/douniabloom

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/urgencesdz/

Project Summary

Elevator Pitch

Concise Summary: Help us pitch this solution! Provide an explanation within 3-4 short sentences.

In Algeria the urgent medical aid service are called "SAMU = service d'aide médicale urgente". However their toll-free number and their services are barely efficient for the population's need. Therefore if an emergency happens we are in most need of resources. The latter will be DZ-Urge.

WHAT IF - Inspiration: Write one sentence that describes a way that your project dares to ask, "WHAT IF?"

DZ-Urge will save your life!

About Project

Problem: What problem is this project trying to address?

In Algeria the medical emergency Toll-free number or the number of the SAMU (urgent medical aid service) is unfortunately barely efficient. This unity contains 80 doctors, 31 paramedics and 34 ambulances in the capital Algiers. However, this is still not enough for a city from 4 to 5 million inhabitants. Most people with an emergency had their friends have to rent ambulances and have no idea what to do to help before arrival to the hospital.

Solution: What is the proposed solution? Please be specific!

The solution is then to create a mobile application (as 98% of Algerians have access to mobile phones and about 63% are having smartphones "Ecrison study"). The main features of this application will be: • Database of toll-free numbers of SAMU and the civil protection. As well addresses and numbers of ambulances renters if no answer is received from the SAMU. • A platform where the patient or his helper will select the symptoms the suffering person has. Then he or she will receive an advice on what should and shouldn’t be done from the moment the accident happens until the arrival to the hospital. • Hospitals map with the different services included. • A GPS that is to be used to guide the user to the right service efficiently.

Awards

not yet

Impact: How does it Work

Example: Walk us through a specific example(s) of how this solution makes a difference; include its primary activities.

DZ-urge will be an application that can help someone to deal with his own emergency. If this person fainted or have no conscious, someone next to him can use the application in order to have the right reaction to the emergency (The toll-free number is barely efficient). DZ-Urge will have a GPS of the emergency services inside the hospitals. This will help gain time comparing to asking people for the right way to go. This time is very valuable if someone got a heart attack or severe allergy. Besides, the app will have a bonus containing the contact of the hospitals and the places that rent ambulances. This will help if the SAMU can't be reached. These changes are possible because 63% of Algerians are having smartphones (Ericson study).

Impact: What is the impact of the work to date? Also describe the projected future impact for the coming years.

Making this application successful is when it works efficiently, be popular among its users and most important the mortality rate due to bad care assistance decrease, This success is for me reachable only with good planning of the work project, with constructive feedback from its users and with evaluation of the mortality rate. The progress of the project is going to be measured by: 1. The users of the application will have the right reflex towards an emergency (This could be checked by a survey). 2. Complications due to wrong or deficient assistance in case of emergency will decrease (This could be made by the comparison of statistics of these complications before and after using the application). 3. Percentage of people finding their way easier if they are going to the hospital by car thanks to the map containing in the map will increase (This could be evaluated by a survey).

Spread Strategies: Moving forward, what are the main strategies for scaling impact?

My vision within the 10 following years is: Saving lives by providing clear, easy-to follow and updated healthcare assistance! This vision could be realized by achieving a good quality assistance in the application. Also, but updating it every year as emergency assistance procedures can be changed and users can give us useful feedback on how to make the application functionality better. Furthermore, every user who had saved a life with it could donate to make this application progress. Algerian are in need of such healthcare assistance, therefore the idea has no reason not to be accepted.

Sustainability

Financial Sustainability Plan: What is this solution’s plan to ensure financial sustainability?

Ashoka funding will let this application become real. I will try to get sponsor from the mobile operator "Oreedo" which has already sponsored several youth application in order to promote DZ-Urge when it will be realized. I'll charge pharmaceutical industry and ambulances renters for advertisement of their services and products. This will allow the application be sustainable financially in the middle and long term.

Marketplace: Who else is addressing the problem outlined here? How does the proposed project differ from these approaches?

My project is the first of its in my country. The application is addressed to every person assisting to someone whose health is in danger. This will be a need especially if the SAMU is saturated or not answering. Furthermore most Algerians have smartphones in 2016 especially the one living in big cities like Algiers (it was estimated to 63% in 2015 by Ericson study). Moreover most of the Algerian masters and use internet and mobile in French (69%), this application will be made in that language.

Team

Founding Story

In summer 2009, my grandmother has fall down at home and broke her leg. In order to take her to the hospital, my physician uncle has look for ambulances renters and assist her at home. When I remember now, we feel so lucky to have our uncle. And I realized that without him we could not help our beloved grandmother. If we have called the SAMU and they didn't answer or they were overloaded. My grandmother could have waited a lot to get treatment or could have been taken by car in a very insecure position than had complications. This has raised in me the strong feeling to save the lives that could have been saved by optimal healthcare assistance.

Team

Khellaf Dounia: The project manager and founder. Chekkai Narimene: Medical member of the project (logistics). Boukerzaza Bouchra: Medical member of the project (communication). Khellaf Lounes: Application developper. Younes Sennaj: Application developper and advisory board member.

File attachments:

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