Founder and CEO of Medlitics, Michael Fasere, speaks about the need to build customised digital healthcare tools for Africa that will address long-term clinical conditions and enable clinicians to depend less on internet connectivity, while carrying out daily clinical routine, writes Emma Okonji
What specific gap or personal experience led to the founding of Medlitics, and why did you choose to focus specifically on chronic disease management in Africa, despite the digital infrastructure gap that exist?
Medlitics was born from firsthand experience with the fragmentation of healthcare delivery across Africa. We repeatedly saw patients with hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic illnesses move among hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies, and specialists without a unified medical history. Care was episodic rather than continuous, leading to delayed interventions, duplicate tests, avoidable complications, and unnecessary healthcare costs.
The challenge isn’t merely access to healthcare—it’s continuity of care. Chronic diseases now account for an increasing share of deaths across Africa, yet most health systems remain designed to treat acute illnesses. Patients often seek care only when complications arise because mechanisms for continuous monitoring, early intervention, and personalized support are limited.
