Part of the Project
Cameroon, a Central African country with a population of some 20 million people, lays claim to only 30 heart surgeons. To make matters worse, these heart surgeons are mainly concentrated in Douala or Yaoundé, the country’s two most important economic hubs.
The Cardiopad, a touch-screen medical tablet, makes it possible to perform heart examinations such as an electrocardiogram (ECG) in remote, rural locations, while the results of the test are transferred wirelessly to specialists for interpretation.
Arthur Zang, a 24-year-old Cameroonian engineer, invented the Cardiopad. According to Zang, the device is “the first fully touch-screen medical tablet made in Cameroon and Africa.”
The device spares African patients living in remote areas the trouble of having to travel to urban centers to seek advanced medical examinations.
He believes it is an invention that will facilitate the treatment of patients with heart disease across Cameroon and the rest of Africa, helping to save numerous lives.
The Cardiopad formed a part of the Africa is Now exhibition at Design Indaba Expo 2014, under the theme 'Africa is Resourceful' that explored both high-tech and lo-fi innovations from Africa that are finding application elsewhere in the world.
