LIONESS WEEKENDER COVER STORY
Every year in African hospitals, people die because health workers could not find the essential medical products needed on time and in the right condition. This problem affects pregnant women, children under the age of 5, victims of traumatic accidents, and people suffering from sickle cell anemia and other chronic conditions. For entrepreneur Temie Giwa-Tubosun, founder of Lifebank, these statistics needed to change. She did the math and found that over 14,965,000 people die annually in Africa from the shortage of essential medical products. Today, Temie’s business is working to harness the power of technology and innovation to find life-saving solutions.
LifeBank is a medical distribution company that uses data and technology to help health workers discover essential medical products like blood and oxygen. The company deploys its smart logistics system to deliver these products to hospitals on time and in the right condition. For example, Lifebank delivers the blood requested on its discovery platform or via its 24/7 call center to hospitals in under than 45 minutes, in a WHO Blood Transfusion Safety compliant cold chain.
Lifebank’s operations have been validated in two cities, Lagos and Abuja, and since its launch in 2016, the company has moved products of over 19,000+ units to 400+ hospitals, saving the lives of 6,500 people in the process. In addition to improving access to essential medical products, LifeBank is also committed to ensuring the safety of essential medical products it moves, so as to reduce the rate of new HIV infections in Nigeria attributed to unsafe blood transfusions. To achieve this, the company developed SmartBag, a blockchain-powered essential medical product integrity solution that will improve the safety standard of blood and reduce the infections of Transfusion Transmissible Infections like HIV and Hepatitis.
Speaking abut her vision for Lifebank and its future growth, founder Temie Giwa-Tubosun says:
“Our vision is to be the supply chain engine for healthcare systems across Africa and save the lives of 1 million Africans in the next 10 years. LifeBank is in the process of raising 5 million in Series A and seeking to secure another 5 million in grant capital to continue growing and innovating to bring impact across the developing world.”
Temie pitching her business to investors in the UK at Start-up Night Africa! London hosted by Lionesses of Africa and UK DIT as part of the UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020.
In the last years of operation, Lifebank has grown significantly, moving over 19,000 units of products to 2 cities in Nigeria, grown its revenue by an average of 3x year on year, and excitingly has developed a proof of concept using UAVs (drones) to deliver critical medical products in Ethiopia. The company has also launched SmartBag, a blockchain-powered product that helps patients and health providers discover the immutable safety record of blood and blood components, and is in the process of conducting a clinical trial in partnership with NIMR and Johnson and Johnson. Lifebank’s impact has also grown significantly as well, with over 6,500 lives saved.
Temie adds:
“We are excited to work with public and private investors to expand to other cities and countries, product portfolio expansion, and monetization of our innovations.”
About Temie Giwa-Tubosun
Temie Giwa-Tubosun studied International Public Management from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. She has over 10 years of health management experience with the Department for International Development (DFID), World Health Organization, UNDP, and the Lagos State Government. In 2014, the BBC listed her as one of the 100 Women Changing The World. She was also recognized as an African Innovator by Quartz and the World Economic Forum. She is the Founder and CEO of LifeBank - Africa's healthcare supply chain engine. The company helps hospitals discover essential medical supplies and delivers them in the right condition and on time. Find out more www.lifebank.ng
Read Temie’s Startup Story:
Temie Giwa-Tubosun, a Nigerian entrepreneur on a mission to save lives through LifeBank, her blood sourcing and delivery service - Lionesses of Africa
Hospitals and patients need lifesaving blood supplies, each and every day, but finding safe supplies of blood and getting it delivered quickly in the right condition has been a challenge in Nigeria. Today, one entrepreneur is changing that. Temie Giwa-Tubosun, founder and ceo of LifeBank , is getti