Digital adherence technologies (DAT) are digital tools that can help tuberculosis (TB) patients to finish their treatment successfully. The Unitaid-funded ASCENT project studies the effectiveness of said technologies and provides them to selected health facilities in Ethiopia, South Africa, Tanzania, the Philippines and Ukraine. 26-year-old TB patient Andy Mayingi from South Africa talks in this video about his experience using a DAT, the smart pillbox, for his treatment.

Last February Andy started coughing, for which he started taking antibiotics. Even after taking antibiotics for two weeks, he didn’t see any changes. So, he went to the clinic to get tested for COVID-19. When the test came back negative, the health center advised him to get tested for TB.

Together with his TB diagnosis, he was advised to use the smart pillbox by EvriMed. “This box helps me a lot”, Andy explains. “It always reminds me when to take my medication. Another good thing about the box is, you don’t need to charge it.” Sometimes Andy doesn’t have electricity, but that doesn’t stop the smart pillbox from working. The battery will last for at least a month.

Mayingi would advise everybody to use the smart pillbox for their medication, especially if it’s a long treatment. Watch the video by The Aurum Institute.

The Unitaid funded and supported ASCENT project in South Africa is led by KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation together with The Aurum Institute and in partnership with London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and PATH.