View from the Matuwa Clinic - a video

Bass Stewart • January 9, 2016

I woke up on a gloomy wet morning thinking of Matuwa clinic and wanted to share this song going through my head. Whilst on a visit to Matuwa, Uganda, last month Evelyn our housekeeper was washing clothes and singing at the guest house. The view here is across the Rift Valley towards Kenya, where there are fabulous sunsets. I couldn't resist videoing this moment with her beautiful voice and the scenery around the clinic. Her words mean 'Life is good, we are happy' and I can't help but feel strong emotion when I watch this video.

How EMR4DW works at the Matuwa Clinic

My wife and I visited 3 clinics in Kenya and Uganda in November/December last year. Matuwa is high up the mountain, quite remote from towns and cities. The clinic here has been using EMR4DW for 18 months and this was a return visit for me. As well as supporting the staff as a doctor, an aim of our visit was to get feedback on EMR4DW to improve the system and take out new backup cards to safeguard the patient data.
At the clinic, there is no internet and often no power. EMR4DW is loaded onto a master laptop, so all the patient data is at risk if this gets damaged. We back up the patient data daily, to protect the patient medical records. It was essential to take new cards for this purpose.
The clinic uses 5 stations:
- to log patients in on arrival
- to do observations/vital measurements (blood pressure, temp etc)
- consultation information
- treatment and pharmacy
- checking patient understanding before they leave (their illness, how to prevent it happening again, how to take their treatment etc.)

These stations are linked to the master laptop via a wifi router. Care for patients has dramatically improved. Imagine going to see your doctor and them having no idea who you are, why you have visited in the past and have no record of previous treatment. It's clear why the staff are totally committed to EMR4DW and never want to return to having no electronic records.
If EMR4DW can work in this remote moutainous setting in Matuwa, Ugangda, we feel it can work anywhere. Now watch the video again!

Find out about our Fundraising

By Linda Murphy • March 14, 2025
Fundraising and Events

News From The Development Team

By Linda Murphy • February 3, 2025
The Development Team is always busy!

Dr Elizabeth and Mark Fowler visit Uganda this week.

By Bill Tams • February 14, 2024
Dr Elizabeth and Mark Fowler are back in Uganda this week. Here they are with Henry Muwonge from Uganda UK Health Alliance at the British High Commission in Kampala. They had a positive meeting with Health Policy Officer Brenda Kabibi OutreachEMR look forward to exploring further potential partnerships with the BHC. Check facebook for more updates. https://uukha.org

HIFA Welcomes Outreach EMR as a supporting organisation.

By Bill Tams • October 20, 2023
OutreachEMR are delighted to be recognised by and work with HIFA to achieve our common goals

Great News from Bushika Uganda

By Bill Tams • July 7, 2022
New EMR Server in Eastern Uganda

Outreach EMR is our new name

By Bill Tams • November 19, 2021
Our name may change but we don't!
Enoch Magala clinic director

A New Year Starts With a New Clinic Using EMR4DW electronic medical records

By Bill Tams • January 28, 2021
All at EMR4DW, Medical Records Save Lives, are delighted to congratulate Enoch Magala, and the whole team of Centre for Youth Driven Development Initiatives (CFYDDI). On the opening of their clinic in Jinja Uganda this month. Several of us have been able to visit Enoch and witness the building of this wonderful facility. I visited along with EMR4DW founder’s Dr Peter Smith and Bass Stewart in 2018, to give advice and demonstrate EMR4DW to the enthusiastic staff. We might be in lockdown in the UK, but the picture shows our Ugandan Senior Ambassador, Julius Okello who spent 2 days helping set up EMR4DW and give staff training. Don’t look so worried everyone!! Most clinics tell us staff, with no previous computer skills, can learn the basics in a couple of days. So it will get better! We all wish you the absolute best of luck and are certain this clinic along with EMR4DW electronic medical records will only help in the wonderful work you do. Watch this blog for further updates.

Happy New Year to all in Clinics using EMR4DW

By Bill Tams • January 4, 2021
The Covid pandemic has made 2020 a very difficult year for the whole world. Clinics using EMR4DW are often at the forefront of such difficulties. They are often working in remote poorly funded areas making their work, caring for their community, extremely challenging. Our thoughts. prayers and best wishes go out to every one of them. There is a glint of hope for the future as research on treatment of covid-19 showing simple inexpensive treatments can help as well as vaccines developed, in Oxford, that, I understand, have promised to be available to all countries at no profit. We hope the WHO can help to roll this out to all vulnerable people wherever they are. One thing we are proud of is that our computer software EMR4DW is able to code Covid-19 as a disease allowing our clinics to monitor case numbers in their communities and inform health departments quickly and accurately. When the vaccines are available every clinic will be able to document every covid-19 vaccine given. Let's hope it is soon! Keep up the good work in 2021.

Testing, Testing, Testing

By Bill Tams • June 6, 2020
In coping with COVID-19 the World Health Organisation said the only way to deal with the virus is to Test,Test and keep Testing. We at EMR4DW have been in lock-down at home for some weeks but have been using the time to benefit our users by listening to the WHO. We have been testing EMR4DW Version 4.0 to ensure it is working perfectly before we roll out our implementation phase later this year. The picture shows one of our regular System Development ZOOM meetings, where we work through our testing programme and plan how we can include our User Manual within the system on screen. I know some clinics are desperate to access the latest version of EMR4DW and we are very keen that you get it but feel time spent testing now will benefit everyone once we are certain it is ready. Watch this space for further updates.

EMR4DW helping clinics in Uganda cope with COVID-19

By Bill Tams • May 7, 2020
Our thoughts have been with ALL our clinics around the world but this message from Uganda did lift our spirits! Maegan Hubbard told us her husband Dr. Emma has been using EMR4DW for all the Covid suspects in Manafwa Uganda! He’s been using it to report to the Task Force weekly and track all the patients on self quarantine and institutional quarantine. It’s made life so much easier than a spreadsheet. Each patient has a COVID Health ID to clearly identify them. EMR4DW has improved search facilities for diseases and with direct links to data collecting hubs via DHIS2 for fast and accurate data transfer. Thanks Maegan keep all your family safe and keep up the good work.
More Posts