YUYAPUY

Problem:

The health sector faces unequal distribution and lack of human & medical resources. This translates to under-equipped primary care centers that cannot cope with the demand of spina bifida patients and other neurological diseases for urinary catheterization for life, who constantly have urinary infections. They cannot seek prompt medical attention, ignore how to cleanly change catheters, and have to reuse them, which demonstrates the underlying economic burden and reduced quality of life.

Idea:

Yuyapuy is a sterile toolkit and service that aids in correctly catheter insertion for reducing urinary infections (UTI). It contains a manual with graphics and labels for enumerating each component so users can intuitively understand the procedure. It also explains possible complications and “red flags” to suspect early UTI signs. Buyers can use our free service for safe used-component disposal, recommendations on disinfection and catheter reuse if needed, and kit resupply at reduced cost.

Main Beneficiaries:

The target population is patients with spinal cord injuries or other nervous system diseases from low income countries with bladder dysfunction that requires constant urinary catheterization. This specific population is neglected by current UTI reduction strategies because they present 4 times more cases of catheter associated UTIs than the overall population that uses daily urinary catheters. Globally in 2019, there were approximately 404.61 million cases of urinary tract infections (UTIs), along with 236,790 deaths by UTIs. Currently, UTIs are the most common healthcare associated infection,but it is imperative to remember that catheter associated UTIs in non-hospitalized patients remains an underreported issue worldwide, so the true impact in numbers is underestimated. There are more than 560 000 cases of catheter UTIs per year in the USA alone, and it has a population of at least 166 000 adults with spina bifida. Some diseases that develop bladder dysfunction (%, prevalence in the USA) include: multiple sclerosis (40–90%, 1 million people), Parkinsonism (37–72%, 1 million individuals ), stroke or brain infarct (15%, 795 000 cases per year), and acute spinal cord injuries ( 70–84%, 200 000 persons).

Stage:

Inspiration and ideation

SDG:

GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-being

GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality

University:

Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (Perú)