MSCAN

According to World Health Organization, approximately 810 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth every day. Up to a half of risk factors for a poor maternal outcome can be detected earlier on during pregnancy by ultrasound and a mother is referred for care in time for the required medical intervention. 94% of all maternal deaths occur in low and lower middle-income countries.

Maternal mortality is unacceptably high. Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia accounted for approximately 86% (254 000) of the estimated global maternal deaths in 2017. Sub-Saharan Africa alone accounted for roughly two-thirds (196 000) of maternal deaths, while Southern Asia accounted for nearly one-fifth (58 000). 

Up to 90% of mothers in rural Africa deliver without ever receiving a sonogram. Risk factors like a cord around the neck of a baby, having a placenta attached in the way of the baby, a baby with a big head among others go on unnoticed. 

Most mothers who die would benefit from a sonogram. Up to 50% of risk factors of maternal mortality can be detected earlier on during pregnancy and these deaths averted.

However there is a challenge to access and affordability of ultrasound scan services especially for rural or resource limited settings where the big  and expensive machines that are power consuming can not be maneuvered in the rural areas. 

MSCAN is a portable ultrasound probe that works on a laptop, phone or tablet to detect risk factors of maternal mortality among pregnant mothers in rural areas. It is 10 times cheaper than the existing big ultrasound machines, power efficient for rural areas in Uganda and across the continent and portable.

With the mSCAN probe in your bag, one can do sonograms for pregnant mothers in any setting by plugging into the phone or laptop.

This enables the democratization of access to life saving ultrasound services to pregnant mothers who would have never gotten a scan in their lifetime.

Our target population have been pregnant mothers in rural Uganda. These mothers have to trek long distances moving from their villages to towns where they can access an ultrasound scan. They spend money on transport to and from and for the scan and this eats away into their meager household income.

In a preliminary survey done by the mSCAN team, there were only 3 ultrasound machines in Mubende, the third largest district in Uganda. Most mothers in villages carry to term with risk factors of maternal mortality like a cord around the neck, a placenta in the way of the baby, a baby with a big head among others. Mothers in rural Uganda further expressed that they were willing to part with $3 for an ultrasound scan. mSCAN has been able to push down the price and make ultrasound in antenatal care affordable and accessible to mothers in resource limited areas.

MSCAN deployed a ultrasound product at Kalangala Island on Lake Victoria that serves a population of 80,000 people on the island.

MSCAN also deployed an MSCAN product bundle that is a laptop and probe in Bukwe district which is a mountainous and border district between Uganda and Kenya. Local staff were then trained in the use of ultrasound courtesy of MSCAN and grantors. 

MSCAN has brought down the cost while increasing access of ultrasound scans for pregnant mothers in hard to reach and resource limited settings.

We have also brought a positive experience around pregnancy as mothers can be rest assured that them and the baby are well. 

To date, MSCAN has provided 1600 ultrasound scans to pregnant mothers in rural Uganda and 300 mothers flagged with risk factors have received emergency obstetric care like a cesarean section.

Ahimbisibwe Prosper is a medical doctor a graduate from Makerere University with 5 years experience in medical practice. He serves as the Clinical Lead at MSCAN Uganda where he is in charge of clinical protocols, regulatory issues, strategy and documentation. 

Menyo Innocent is a medical radiographer, a graduate from Makerere University with 5 years in imaging modalities like ultrasound , MRI,Xray among others. He serves as the Team Lead where he is in charge of financials and overseeing day to day operations. 

Phyllis Kyomuhendo is a medical radiographer a graduate from Makerere University who serves as the Impact Lead at MSCAN. She has 3 years experience in medical imaging and a masters of public health. 

Nasasira Ivan is a information systems analyst by training from Makerere University. At MSCAN Uganda, he serves as the technology lead where he in charge of company software needs and connectivity of all pilot sites. 

First, we are raising more seed funding through grants to have the mSCAN probe in 100 medical clinics most likely through the hire purchase and revenue sharing business models. 

MSCAN is looking for a business analyst to help with business development as we scale out. 

MSCAN is looking out for a board member with global experience in venture capital and healthcare financing to help the team navigate the murky waters of seed and series raising of capital and strategy to scale across the region. 

mSCAN is empowering front line health workers and clinicians with an affordable diagnostic solution to curb the high mortality in Africa.

mSCAN's innovativeness lies in making portable and low cost ultrasound probes that can fit in your pocket to deliver ultrasound to the most underserved mothers in rural Africa.

An mSCAN probe goes for $2500 as a package with a smart phone or laptop. 

This a almost almost a tenth of the cost of the big ultrasound machine that goes for $15 to $20000.

We are leverage  on the portability, affordability and low power consumption of our devices to deliver life saving ultrasound access to pregnant mothers most in need.

MSCAN is delivering its product through innovative business models like the revenue sharing model that allows us to generate revenue while at the same time creating impact in terms of ultrasound scans done in underserved communities. 

For next one year, MSCAN wants to perform 20,000 scans for mothers in underserved communities. This is through deploying more six ultrasound probes to make 10 probes in the field. One probe performs a minimum of 10 ultrasound scans a day making it 2400 scans per year per probe. 

We hope to achieve this through deployment with funding from development partners and rolling out MSCAN marketing agents to reach out aggressively to clinics.

In the next five years, MSCAN aspires to roll out 1000 devices in peri-urban, urban, semi-urban and rural areas. This will be done through full commercialization of the MSCAN device. Through this we hope to perform 2.5 million scans for pregnant mothers who would have never gotten an ultrasound scan. 

We are measuring our progress in terms of first revenue coming into the company from the MSCAN probes. We believe it is a marker of sustainability as well. 

We are measure our social impact in terms of sonograms performed for pregnant mothers using the MSCAN ultrasound probe. 

mSCAN has increased access and lowered the cost of pregnant mothers accessing an ultrasound scan.

mSCAN has on to of that pioneered the training of midwives and clinicians in the use of ultrasound scans.

This increases the number of pregnant mothers in rural areas who ideally would never receive an ultrasound in their antenatal. Risk factors of maternal mortality like a cord around the neck of the baby, placenta previa among other are detected much earlier in pregnancy and a proper safe delivery is put in place. More pregnant mothers are able to schedule and receive the required medical intervention like  a ceaserian section.

This also leads to a positive experience in pregnancy and a better outcome for both the mother and the baby.

Our probes are made of pizoelectric crystals with a digital signal processing chip that coverts ultrasound waves into a digital image of a baby on the screen. 

The core team is made of a female who is a cofounder and serves as the impact lead for MSCAN. 

In the recruitment of sales and marketing agents, mSCAN included a female to join the company and lead the team.

While training frontline health workers in the use of ultrasound, MSCAN ensured diversity by prioritizing female midwives. We have trained two midwives in the use of obstetric ultrasound to detect risk factors of maternal mortality.

MSCAN devices are sold via direct sale to medical clinics and hospitals as a bundle with a laptop for $2500. The MSCAN software is installed on the laptop and the probe is plugged in via a USB 2.0 port to achieve an audio-visual image of the baby. 

For clinics that cant afford the full amount, we come to agreements with them to pay for the MSCAN product bundle in installments via a hire purchase model. Here, we are cognizant of the capital expenditure of rural clinics.

The third is a revenue sharing model that allows to increase our impact in terms of number of scans delivered to pregnant mothers in resource limited settings. Under this model, a clinic that totally cant afford our device but has a steady flow of pregnant mothers acquires an mSCAN device on lease. We split the revenue where each entity take a half. This allows for both revenue and impact.

Our goal is to sign an official contract with the Ugandan government through the Ministry of Health to supply them with portable ultrasound devices across the 1153 health centers with antenatal units. This will be done with partnership and support from development partners. 

MSCAN recruited marketing agents to reach out and market to medical clinics and hospitals and sell our brand and products. Here, we are targeting urban and peri-urban centers in order to convert key interests into sales that can generate revenue. By, our business projections, we should be able to turn profitable after selling out 150 MSCAN bundles.

After establishing a formidable chain of 25 clinics under the revenue sharing model, we plan to raise money through debt and equity to scale our impact and revenues to a 1000 private clinics in rural and semi-urban centers.

three machines through airtel and anonymous funder