We've heard about campers, kitchens and even tiny homes that fit in pickup truck beds, but the PreCare system is decidedly more altruistic. It's a truck-bed-based popup healthcare center, designed to serve remote and impoverished communities.
Adaptable to different makes and models of pickup trucks, the modular setup is being developed by a team from Germany's Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, and Stellenbosch University.
When not in use, the kit folds down to sit in and above the back of the truck. It stays securely in place, even as the vehicle traverses the long stretches of rough roads that typically link remote villages in underserved regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa. These communities often lack clinics or healthcare professionals of their own.
Upon reaching their destination, the PreCare team quickly deploy the system by folding it out to the sides. The whole thing can reportedly be operated by just one driver and one healthcare professional. Among other things, it can be used to perform pre-clinical examinations, checkups, tests, and vaccinations.
Some of the onboard equipment includes a refrigerator (for samples and medication), water purification system, and disinfectant production module. There's also a satellite-linked laptop which allows users to consult with remotely located physicians, as they examine patients via Bluetooth-linked devices such as blood pressure monitors, ECGs, mobile ultrasound units, and X-ray equipment.
Power is provided by a battery bank which is connected to an array of photovoltaic panels.
The first PreCare prototype was tested by a non-profit organization over a nine-month period in 2023, in the South African community of Daantjie. Approximately 120 residents utilized the system each month for a variety of purposes, although it was being used mainly for HIV testing.
A non-governmental organization began operating a second prototype in April 2024, as part of a program for the early detection and prevention of cervical cancer in Namibia. Manufacturing, sales and maintenance are now being handled by Fraunhofer spinoff company S Mile Solutions, located in South Africa.
"PreCare puts healthcare within reach for everyone, everywhere," says project leader Frank Neumann.
Source: Fraunhofer
