Africa innovates Magazine -AI4DEV - Flipbook - Page 16
AFRICA INNOVATES
T E M I E G I WA -T U B O S U N ( N i g e r i a )
EVERY BREATH
COUNTS
A I R B A N K BY L I F E B A N K
AirBank is an on-demand emergency medical
oxygen delivery product that is the quickest,
most convenient, and cost-effective way to
order medical oxygen in cylinders.
The force behind this essential service is Temie Giwa-Tubosun, a resourceful entrepreneur who through her
company LifeBank, which she founded in 2016, is one
of the few African women innovators redefining the
continent’s health sector.
Today, LifeBank is renowned for its life-saving techled medical product distribution services in Nigeria, with
potential to expand beyond the country’s borders.
“Medical oxygen therapy became the most commonly utilized therapy in the management of the COVID-19 virus. Provision of emergency medical oxygen
in optimum conditions is critical to save lives and
prevent irreversible damage to the health of COVID-19
patients,” Temie says, explaining what inspired her to
come up with AirBank.
C R I T I C A L TO S AV E L I V E S
As an on-demand emergency medical oxygen delivery
product, AirBank was quickly developed to mitigate and
help meet the increased demand during the pandemic.
It has since become one of the quickest, most convenient, and cost-effective ways to order medical oxygen in
cylinders in the country, in response to the COVID-19.
“AirBank has provided more than 100 units of 6(cm3)
of medical oxygen to isolation centers treating COVID-19 patients,” says Temie who is leading a team of
experts including an operations manager, medical dispatch riders, and truck drivers, to help effectively deliver
16 SHOWCASING AFRICAN INNOVATION
the new service
“We have distributed medical oxygen to 6 isolation
centers treating COVID-19 patients in 3 regions in
Nigeria: Lagos, Kano and Oyo States, providing [hitherto] 154 units of 6(cm3) of medical oxygen, saving
more than 400 lives.
NEW NORMAL
As the world braces itself to face the new normal of
a post COVID-19 healthcare system, LifeBank is now
scaling up and expanding AirBank - as a last mile
medical oxygen distributor in Nigeria, and has already
expanded its services beyond isolation centers,
launching in 3 new states of Nasarawa, Kano and
Bayelsa.
“Oxygen is critical in providing needed patient care
to many patients, beyond those suffering from COVID-19 infection,” Temie says. “ AirBank is positioned to
provide a solution and we plan to continue expansion
to reach other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa,” she
concludes.
