This year’s theme for World Health Day is maternal and newborn health, highlights the urgent need to support women through every stage of their reproductive journey. While maternal health is often associated with hospitals and specialised care, real change happens when local clinics and frontline providers are equipped to diagnose and treat conditions early.
These entrepreneurs in our network are making significant strides in expanding healthcare access, particularly for women:
- FlexiGyn™, co-founded by Christopher Kent Meunier and Dr. Edmund Wessels is revolutionising gynecological care with a user-guided hysteroscopy platform that eliminates unnecessary delays in diagnosing and treating uterine conditions.
- Shiyiwa Healthcare Services, founded by Elizabeth Ntombi Skosana, is expanding access to affordable, patient-centered primary healthcare, ensuring that even underserved communities receive the care they need.
Breaking barriers in women’s health with FlexiGyn™
For millions of women, abnormal uterine bleeding is more than just a medical issue – it’s a barrier to fertility, pregnancy, and overall well-being. In South Africa’s public healthcare system, it can take up to 10 months to access hysteroscopy, the key diagnostic procedure needed to identify conditions like fibroids, polyps, and endometrial overgrowths.
While waiting, women are often prescribed iron tablets, hormonal treatments, or fitted with an IUD to manage the symptoms. When the root issue remains, women are left to endure cycles of bleeding, anaemia, fatigue, and declining reproductive health. The reality is that many of these conditions can be diagnosed and treated in under 10 minutes. The barrier is access. Without timely intervention, these conditions can lead to miscarriages, pregnancy complications, and even life-threatening haemorrhages.
FlexiGyn™’s mission is to transform uterine health with a simple, gentle device which turns months of waiting into minutes of certainty.
A 15-minute, anaesthesia-free procedure, 50x more affordable than traditional methods, available as close as your local clinic
The impact on maternal and reproductive health is profound:
- Early diagnosis of uterine conditions can prevent complications during pregnancy.
- Reduced need for unnecessary surgeries, such as hysterectomies.
- Improved access to fertility care, particularly for women in underserved areas.
- A shift in how gynaecological care is delivered, making it more respectful and patient-centred.
But beyond the technology, FlexiGyn™ is changing the conversation. By breaking the silence around uterine health, they are encouraging women to advocate for better care while equipping healthcare workers with the tools they need to provide it.
“Effective health systems aren’t just built top-down,” Chris explains. “They are real stories, billions of them, lived by women who co-create a healthy society.”
Bringing healthcare to communities with Shiyiwa Healthcare Services
While private healthcare in South Africa is often too expensive for many, public healthcare struggles with overcrowding, long wait times, and limited resources. Ntombi saw an opportunity to bridge the gap, creating community-based clinics that offer quality primary healthcare at an affordable price.
Shiyiwa Healthcare Services is shifting the focus from reactive care to preventative and primary healthcare, ensuring that communities receive the care they need before conditions become critical. This approach not only improves health outcomes but also reduces hospitalisations and lowers public healthcare costs.
One of the most powerful examples of how early intervention can change lives is the story of Miss South Africa, who is deaf. As a baby, her condition was detected during a routine primary healthcare visit. A referral to a specialist confirmed her diagnosis, and her community came together to secure a hearing device. Today, she is a thriving, empowered young woman. This story illustrates the profound importance of early detection and the role that primary healthcare plays in improving the long-term health and quality of life of individuals.
Shiyiwa’s work extends beyond just providing healthcare, it fosters a sense of community empowerment. By making healthcare more accessible, Ntombi’s initiative encourages local communities to get involved in health decisions, which in turn helps to reduce stigma around conditions like HIV/AIDS and other STDs. This participatory model also promotes better adherence to chronic medication, ensuring that individuals feel supported and invested in their own health.
Ntombi emphasises that healthcare should not be dictated solely by medical professionals but shaped by the communities it serves. By empowering people to participate in their own healthcare decisions, her clinics improve treatment adherence, reduce stigma, and foster a more proactive approach to health.
“Communities have more resources than we often recognise,” she says. “The key is to work with them, not impose solutions on them.”
The future of healthcare: Trusting local providers & community innovation
Ed, Chris and Ntombi agree that one of the biggest barriers to effective healthcare is that frontline providers are expected to solve problems without the right tools.
Ed and Chris believe that giving local clinics access to better diagnostic technology would drastically improve healthcare outcomes, saving women years of pain and uncertainty. Ntombi envisions a healthcare system where patients play an active role in their own care, leading to better adherence, reduced stigma, and stronger communities.
Their advice to aspiring social impact entrepreneurs is clear:
- “Solve something you feel in your gut. Let people (especially women) tell you where the system is failing them. Build with them, not just for them. The solutions that last are the ones that start small, go deep, and grow from real relationships”. – Chris
- “Build with communities, not just for them. Work with and within existing community initiatives. There are a lot of resources within communities no matter how poor the residents are. Don't just impose your ideas.” – Ntombi
A call to action
Healthcare innovation isn’t just about technology, it’s about people, empowerment, and transforming systems from the ground up. The work of FlexiGyn™ and Shiyiwa Healthcare Services is proof that when healthcare is made accessible, lives are changed. As we mark World Health Day, we celebrate entrepreneurs who challenge the status quo, ensuring that maternal and reproductive health is a right, not a privilege.
