The Cepheid make it happen Award officially presented to KNCV Nigeria on the 26th of April virtually via Zoom.

The award

The Award was presented by Rika Dutau – Vice President/General Manager, EMEA Commercial Operations and James Beckett – Director, Business Unit Point- of-Care/Alternate Site.

To the Wellness on Wheels truck represented by the Northern WoW team. Two of these trucks are in use; one each for the Northern and Southern regions of Nigeria. 

The Northern WoW team at the virtual award presentation

Award presentation participants include the Executive Director KNCV International Dr. Mustapha Gidado, KNCV HQ team, and the Executive Director KNCV Nigeria, Dr. Bethrand Odume along with the KNCV Cepheid Project Coordinator, Prisca Ajiboye, and the WoW Truck team. The Cepheid team supporting Nigeria were also on the call. 

Augustin Mortamet – Regional Business Director, North & West Africa.

Stephen Opoku – Key Account Manager West Africa.

Rujeko Tsomondo – Regional Application Lead.

Participants at the award presentation

The Wellness on Wheels (WoW truck) met all the five key considerations for judges and came out on top to win the customer award which is a first of its kind. The Award seeks to reward outstanding projects making huge patient impact.

 

KNCV Nigeria through the support of USAID has been in the leading edge of utilizing and optimizing GeneXpert machines in Nigeria from the TB CARE 1 project and Challenge TB project till date. This technology operationalized in a mobile truck, the Wellness on Wheel (WoW) improved access to quality TB diagnostics in communities and high-volume patient facilities contributed to increase in TB case finding and reduction in turn-around-time of test results. 

The Wellness on Wheels truck

Originally, the WoW truck was a Tuberculosis intervention but during the global COVID– 19 pandemic it was deployed as an integrated mobile unit for both Tuberculosis and COVID screening and diagnosis. The GeneXpert instruments in the WOW truck utilizes MTB/Rif, MTB/Rif Ultra and most recently SARS CoV-2 cartridges.

 

The truck is equipped with 2 units of 4 modular GeneXpert instruments, Digital X-ray machine with artificial intelligence – CAD4TB. All components are powered by solar inverters and a backup power generator. The WoW team consists of the ACF Coordinator, a radiographer, medical laboratory personnel, Truck driver and ad-hoc staff (who are responsible for awareness creation and community mobilization).