With only two doctors per 100,000 people, far below the WHO’s recommended one per 1,000 Zimbabwe’s public healthcare system is stretched thin. Doctors often split their time between under-resourced public hospitals and overburdened private clinics that serve much of the urban population. Paper-based records and manual admin tasks only make matters worse, leading to long wait times, errors, and burnout.
That’s where Avalon Health steps in. Founded in 2022, the Zimbabwean startup is bringing much needed relief to private clinics with its AI powered platform. The system handles time consuming tasks like appointment scheduling, patient records, billing, and even transcribing doctors’ notes in real-time.
“Doctors used to max out at about 12–15 patients a day,” says founder Panashe Madzudzo. “With our platform, many now attend to up to 40 patients daily.” Wait times have dropped from over 45 minutes to just 20, and clinics report a 25–40% boost in efficiency.
Avalon’s platform is also designed to ease onboarding for new staff, a crucial feature for practices with high staff turnover. “The AI understands intent,” Madzudzo adds. “You can tell it what you want done, and it just does it.”
Language is another hurdle Avalon is tackling. While English is widely used in formal settings, most Zimbabweans communicate in Shona or Ndebele. Avalon’s AI currently translates English with 99% accuracy but is still being trained to better understand local languages, with Shona and Ndebele accuracy at around 75%.
“We’re actively improving local language support and plan to add Zulu and Tswana as we expand into South Africa,” Madzudzo says.
Avalon Health isn’t just speeding up patient care—it’s reshaping how healthcare works in places where every minute, and every doctor, counts.
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