KEHEALA AWARDED $600,000 FROM U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TO SCALE TB INTERVENTION IN KENYA

The U.S. Agency for International Development through its Development Innovation Ventures (DIV) program has awarded Keheala a $600,000 non-dilutive grant to scale its demonstrated tuberculosis (TB) intervention in Kenya.

With this funding, Keheala will enroll a diverse patient population across Kenya’s geographic, cultural and socioeconomic spectrums. A four-sided randomized controlled trial (RCT) will compare Keheala’s cost-effectiveness with alternative adherence interventions.

The Stage 2 grant was issued following a successful proof-of-concept RCT supported by DIV Stage 1 funding. Patients using the Keheala intervention demonstrated a two-thirds reduction in the unsuccessful treatment outcomes - death, failed treatment and loss to follow up - compared to the standard of care control group.

Upon issuing the grant, the DIV team remarked that while 90% of Stage 1 recipients apply for Stage 2 funding through the program, only 5% of these applicants receive a Stage 2 award.

The innovation program is setup to "bring in new ideas for solving problems facing millions around the world - delivering more impact, for less money, with greater potential for sustainable scale. Inspired by the venture capital experience, DIV uses a tiered, evidence-based funding model to test ideas, gather evidence of what works, find failures quickly and cheaply, without long-term commitments, and continue to support only proven solutions."

Founded in 2014, Keheala is a mobile health company that improves healthcare access and treatment outcomes by empowering patients with information, motivation and support, all across basic feature phones or smartphones. Keheala addresses the non-medical drivers of disease that exist away from health facilities while providing healthcare agencies with the remote-monitoring capabilities and analytics necessary for combatting epidemics in resource-constrained environments.