November 13, 2020

SEAD to Host “Health Hackathon” in Nairobi

It is no secret that Kenya’s vibrant start-up culture is solving real problems in clever ways.

The Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator at Duke and Innovations in Healthcare want to harness that energy toward solving health problems with the first ever Health Hackathon in Nairobi, Kenya on September 18th- 20th. The Health Hackathon will include programmers, healthcare enterprises, established multinational corporations, and funders. Networking at the event will help cross-fertilize new ideas.

Selected participants at this multi-day event will work in multi-disciplinary teams and use their technical skills to design innovative solutions that address the needs of healthcare organizations and consumers in East Africa. The SEAD Health Hackathon is the first event of its kind in Kenya and is designed to provide a space for collaborative, creative problem solving to challenge seemingly entrenched problems by testing innovative concepts and ideas through the rapid building and testing of low-cost solutions and prototypes.

The hackathon will focus on three thematic areas/tracks:

  • Managing Non-communicable Diseases
  • Improving quality of maternal & child health
  • Increasing access to healthcare

Are you a creative thinker who is up to the Hackathon challenge?

We are looking for graphic designers, coders, health care entrepreneurs, and other creative people to participate.  SPACE IS LIMITED Apply to be selected for the event here:

https://duke.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bKiQ4uZE7BE0MF7

The deadline to apply has been extended to September 5th.  Participants will be notified shortly after.  Following a kick-off event on Friday afternoon, participants will work in teams   on Saturday and hack.  All teams will have the chance to pitch their ideas on Sunday morning to a panel of judges comprised of leaders from established multinational and local private sector organizations.

Winners of the Hackathon will receive a high-value suite of prizes intended to support the ongoing development of the solution – including cash, mentorship support from experts, and opportunities to pitch their solution to leading businesses in Kenya.

 Apply now!

https://duke.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bKiQ4uZE7BE0MF7

If you have any questions please contact Dr. Patricia Odero (patricia.odero@duke.edu) or Sylvia Sable (sylvia.sable@duke.edu).