Rocket Health offers online medical consultation, collection of samples, and delivery of medicines. They also have a USSD service for those without internet connection. After nearly a decade of operation in Uganda, the startup is now set to scale its integrated digital health solution to more regions across the country and within East Africa over the next two years, following a $5 million Series A funding. In the long term, it will pursue growth opportunities in West Africa. Currently, countries across sub-Saharan Africa have 0.23 doctors for every 10,000 people, against the best ratio of 84.2 doctors in the most developed countries.
The startup’s latest funding round was led by Creadev, an evergreen investment firm backed by Mulliez family, with participation of early-stage African investors Grenfell Holdings and LoftyInc Capital Management. The round brings the total funding raised by Rocket Health to $6.2 million. Other telehealth startups in the space across Africa include Ghanaian health tech startup mPharma, which revealed plans to set up 100 virtual centers in its markets by the first quarter of the year, and Quro Medical, a South African startup that offers home care complemented by telemedicine service. The company has grown from a few thousand virtual consultations a year to about 400,000, propelled by the demand for remote healthcare during the pandemic. Its clientele base ranges from those calling in to have their children vaccinated to patients managing chronic illnesses. Also, 12 insurance companies have signed up, giving it access to a pool of customers within Uganda and across East Africa, since most of them have a regional presence.