Kenyan e-pharmacy startup MYDAWA has launched a telehealth solution tailored to HIV prevention with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Founded in 2017, MYDAWA enables consumers to conveniently purchase authentic high-quality medicines, health and wellness products through partnerships with healthcare practitioners and suppliers.
The startup’s virtual, discreet and convenient Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) service delivery can expand the reach of PrEP, which has been limited by the stigma associated with HIV and the public nature of the current onboarding system. In December of last year it received a US$1.2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help it to expand access to this system.
Using that funding, and in partnership with the University of Washington, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Fred Hutch Cancer Research Centre, Jhpiego and Audere, MYDAWA has now developed an end-to-end virtual healthcare solution for customers who wish to access PrEP and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) online.
PrEP is a medicine that can be proactively taken daily by people who are at ongoing risk of acquiring HIV. PEP is a medicine that can be taken by people immediately after possibly being exposed to HIV to reduce the risk of getting HIV. The grant awarded to MYDAWA by the Gates Foundation to launch the service aims to generate evidence on virtual PrEP and PEP service delivery.
