Healthcare in Africa faces persistent challenges, including inadequate supply of doctors and facilities, drug shortages, and high costs. One critical issue is the lack of a centralised system for patient data.
Data engineer Geraldine Gloria Kyazze has built an AI-powered smartphone application aimed at improving the patient healthcare experience across the continent. Her work was recognised with the Presidential Award for Outstanding Innovation at the 2025 African Youth in AI and Robotics Competition.
Several lower-middle-income and low-income countries face challenges, including a lack of specific standards on electronic data collection, storage, and sharing, as well as non-interoperable ICT systems and technologies.
Personal experience to innovation
Kyazze’s career has shifted from data engineering to healthcare innovation in a short span.
The innovator now leads a team managing her smartphone application, MyMedikoz. Loosely derived from the English words ‘my medicals,’ MyMedikoz is Uganda’s first and only personal health record system.
Her motivation stemmed from a personal experience. ‘During an emergency in October 2023, a health facility administered drugs that caused severe adverse reactions to my mother, putting her life at risk,’ she says.
‘Despite being unreachable all night, our family doctor, upon finding out, simply said she was allergic to that drug. That moment made me realise how dangerous it is for patient records to exist only in the memory of family doctors or scattered across different facilities, rather than being easily accessible when needed.’
From that experience, Kyazze resolved to address patient medical record data. Two years later, MyMedikoz, supported by Artificial Intelligence (AI), is expanding from Metropolitan Kampala to other parts of the country.
‘This challenge is prevalent because only insured patients, who make up just 1.4 percent, have access to coordinated care, while the rest navigate a fragmented system,’ she explains.
How it works
The app stores and integrates patients’ medical records from various disconnected healthcare facilities and presents them alongside insights that can be accessed anytime, anywhere.
Health specialists and patients can access medical histories, including prescriptions, immunisations, medical imaging, allergies, blood tests, and symptom media, for dependents such as children and elders, all from a single account. Additionally, the app allows appointment bookings, at-home lab tests, medications, and prescription management, backed by insurance information.
Currently, MyMedikoz has almost 10,000 users and is also accessible via a web version in Kampala and Wakiso districts. New features include online consultations and a health forum.
Recognition, expert perspective
Its impact in the health-tech space earned Kyazze the Presidential Award for Outstanding Innovation at the 2025 African Youth in AI and Robotics Competition in Cape Town, South Africa. She became the first Ugandan recipient of the award, chosen from 3,256 competitors across 12 categories.
The ceremony, part of a G20 side event, was attended by South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, African Union Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, and African Union Development Agency CEO Nardos Bekele-Thomas.
Kyazze says the recognition motivates her to continue in digital health.
‘Our theory of change is built on patient-centred care, AI-driven insights, interoperability, and data accuracy. At the individual level, people no longer have to wait for illness to strike; they track their biomarkers, see their health data, receive AI-guided insights, and act early, turning uncertainty into control,’ she said.
‘At the facility level, doctors and nurses can instantly understand patient histories, coordinate care seamlessly, and make informed, life-saving decisions. Real-time evaluated data guides policies, resource allocation, and strategies. This is more than technology; it is a shift toward enabling patients to take control of their healthcare journeys and shaping a healthcare system that collaborates across Africa,’ Kyazze adds.
While MyMedikoz has been praised for innovation, experts note that digital health adoption faces challenges. Dr Sarah Mbabazi, a Kampala-based healthcare policy analyst, says: ‘Apps such as MyMedikoz show promise, but uptake depends on patient access to smartphones, reliable internet, and trust in digital record-keeping. Privacy, data security, and rural accessibility remain critical issues.’
The App
Founder: Geraldine Gloria Kyazze
Innovation: MyMedikoz App
Stance: Enhancing medical information accessibility and enabling patients to own, manage, and share personal or dependents’ health records anytime, anywhere, across multiple devices
Reach: 8,500 users
Recognition: Presidential Award for Outstanding Innovation at the 2025 African Youth in AI and Robotics Competition
Funding pursuit: $300,000 (about Shs1 billion)