🌍 AFIYAPAL – Your AI-Powered Health Assistant for African Lives
✨ Inspiration
Accessing quality healthcare in Africa remains a challenge due to factors like lack of medical infrastructure, language barriers, and inadequate awareness. We created AFIYAPAL to make healthcare more accessible, inclusive, and smarter using AI and low-tech communication solutions. By integrating tools like Gemini AI and we want to bridge the gap between healthcare providers and those who need them most in their own language and via familiar channels.
⚙ What it does
- 🏥 Symptom Checker Powered by Gemini AI – Get instant insights based on your symptoms.
- 💬 Multilingual Support– Interact in Swahili and English.
- 🧠Mental Health Companion – Get mindfulness prompts, tips, and emotional support.
- 👨⚕️ Telemedicine Connector– Easily connect with verified doctors via the platform.
🔧 How we built it
- Backend: Django + Express to manage APIs and integrate third-party tools.
- AI Engine: Gemini AI for symptom checking, healthcare education, and conversational flows.
- Frontend: html css javascript .
- MIT licence : Used for configuration policy enforcement to ensure best practices in deployment.
💪 Challenges we ran into
- Integrating Gemini AI with the web .
- Managing multilingual datasets for health info.
- Time constraints on deploying the full frontend with all API hooks.
- Learning new tools like Gemini AI, MIT licence !
✅ Accomplishments we're proud of
- Built a scalable foundation for AI-assisted healthcare in Kenya.
- Enabled both smartphone and feature phone users to access the platform.
- Learned and implemented powerful tools like Gemini AI .
📚 What we learned
- Practical integration of AI tools for social good.
- The importance of inclusive design in tech for Africa.
- Working with Django .
⏭ What's next
- Finalizing frontend UI integrations with backend APIs.
- Launching the USSD/SMS flow with telecom providers.
- Expanding AI language support to more African dialects.
- Adding a Health Tips Broadcast System using Messages .
- Collaborations with healthcare NGOs and medical students for real-time doctor access.
🙌 Want to contribute?
We welcome contributors to join us in revolutionizing healthcare access in Africa!
🛠 Pre-requisites
- Django installed
- Git installed
- GitHub account
📦 Project setup & Contribution steps
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Fork the repository
https://github.com/AfiyaPal/web_app.git -
Clone the project HTTP bash git clone https://github.com/AfiyaPal/web_app.git
SSH bash git clone git@github.com:AfiyaPal/web_app.git
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Navigate to the API folder bash cd AFIYApal/api
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Create and switch to a new branch bash git checkout -b fix-issue-
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Install dependencies bash npm install
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Make your changes and push
bash git status
git add .
git commit -m "feat: ✨ Added "
git push origin fix-issue- -
Open a Pull Request
- Go to your GitHub fork
- Open the Pull Request tab and click the “New Pull Request” button
- Fill in the details and submit it!
🎉 You’re now officially a contributor to AFIYApal – ASANTE SANA!