The Health Entrepreneurship (HENT) Challenge’s first cohort is getting ready for their upcoming visit to Toronto, where they will continue their implementation phase through activities targeting business development, expanding entrepreneurial networks and facilitating exposure to potential investors.
In the meantime, the HENT Communications team caught up with the ventures from the first HENT Challenge cohort to learn more about the origins of their companies, what they’ve learned to date, and what is coming up next…
Faisal Waiswa, John Francis Okonye, and Emmanuel Obua have a shared ambition: they want to revolutionize healthcare in their community. This goal stems from their personal encounters with the struggles of obtaining affordable healthcare. As an engineering student, Waiswa noticed that healthcare providers were bogged down by inefficient, expensive supply chains. He came up with the idea of an online platform to directly link healthcare providers with medical equipment suppliers. This innovation could simplify the ordering and delivery process, making medical supplies more affordable and accessible.
Waiswa left his job as a biomedical engineer and founded Medical Street with Okonye, Obua and a team of passionate individuals committed to using technology to improve healthcare delivery. Medical Street’s mission is to leverage technology to streamline healthcare delivery. Their platform makes it easy to order and deliver medical equipment, drugs, and other essentials. So far, the startup has catered to over 1000 clients, serviced and repaired equipment in more than 600 hospitals, and facilitated over 1000 digital consultations. This efficiency helps to cut down delays, limit waste, and ultimately enhance patient care.
In addition, Medical Street is transforming the healthcare industry with their innovative features, including their AI-powered hospital and patient management system. This built-in feature gives patients and healthcare providers a simple way to access and manage medical records from a single platform. With these features, Medical Street is not only addressing the supply chain challenge in healthcare, but revolutionizing the way healthcare providers manage patient data and deliver care.
What is the accomplishment to date that your team is most proud of?
One of the accomplishments that we are most proud of is the fact that we have successfully generated revenue and have paying customers. We have also developed an MVP product and manufactured some medical equipment to boost our revenue.
If you could give advice to another founder getting started, what would that be?
Focus on solving a real problem for a specific target audience and validate the problem and solution with potential customers. Build a strong team with complementary skills and shared vision and be sure to prioritize and manage resources effectively. When building your venture, be adaptable and willing to pivot when necessary, and stay persistent and resilient in the face of challenges. It’s also important to seek out mentorship, network with peers in the industry, and continuously learn and improve.
Looking forward, Medical Street’s next step is to scale the business and expand its reach, with a goal to serve more than 200,000 healthcare providers by the end of 2025. Through continued partnerships and outreach, Medical Street aims to achieve 5% market penetration of the Ugandan healthcare sector by 2025 and expand to the entire East African Community by 2030. Ultimately, Medical Street aims to become a leading platform for healthcare providers and suppliers, revolutionizing the way medical equipment and supplies are accessed and distributed.
You can learn more about the Medical Street by visiting their website.
You can learn more about the Medical Street
More News & Events
Skip scroller content
Road to HIFest 2026: Winning Innovations from AfyaFest 2025
As preparations begin for HIFest 2026 in Accra, Ghana, this June, jointly hosted by Ashesi University and KNUST, we celebrate the 2025 winning innovators advancing equitable primary healthcare access across the continent.
Health Innovation Festival 2026 Heads to Accra, Ghana this June
The future of healthcare in Africa will be shaped by young innovators, bold partnerships, and locally driven solutions — and the Health Innovation Festival (HIFest 2026) – formerly AfyaFest, aims to bring all three together in one dynamic continental gathering. This flagship innovation event of the Africa Health Collaborative (AHC) will take place in Accra, Ghana, from June 4-6, 2026. Co-hosted by two of Ghana’s leading universities — Ashesi University […]
Leveraging Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) and AI Innovations to Strengthen Healthcare Delivery in Ghana
Join policymakers, health practitioners, and digital health innovators to learn valuable lessons on applying data-driven approaches in real-world health system contexts.
#IWD2026: Give to Gain—The Ripple Effect of Investing in Women Leaders in Global Health
Read about how fellows from the Women in Global Health Leadership Fellowship are leading and strengthening health systems across Africa.
FemSTEM Africa 2026: Kickoff Event & Panel
Join Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) & U of T on Tuesday, March 31 as we kickoff the FemSTEM Africa 2026 event series!
Program Manager, Africa Health Collaborative
Apply for the Program Manager role at the Africa Health Collaborative. Closing date is March 20, 2026.
Apply for the Introduction to Public Policy Summer Course by Ashesi University
This opportunity is open to alumni and graduating students from our Africa Health Collaborative partner universities.
Towards Integrated, Person-Centered Primary Health Care in South Africa
Join policy makers, health implementers, NGOs, civil society actors, and academic leaders to learn from one of South Africa’s foremost health system leaders about building stronger and more responsive primary health care systems.
From Clinics to Communities: Rethinking Maternal and Newborn Health in Africa
Dr. Henry Kilonzo explores evidence-based lessons from Kenya and Ethiopia about redesigning health systems for safe motherhood.
Building Inclusive Health Systems for People in Contact with the Criminal Justice System in Africa
Join this webinar to explore how Africa can build inclusive health systems that protect the dignity, safety, and well‑being of people who come into contact with the criminal justice system.