iTriage® Helps 2010 World Cup Spectators Find Healthcare in South Africa

Lakewood, CO, June 11, 2010 --(PR.com)-- While South African healthcare workers brace for the influx of thousands of visitors during the 2010 World Cup, tourists and spectators can help make their visit more enjoyable and be prepared for their unexpected healthcare needs by downloading iTriage on their mobile devices. Healthagen® is supporting the emergency preparation efforts in South Africa as the FIFA World Cup kicks off on June 11, by adding the private hospitals, along with facility mapping for facilities, in the eight South African provinces that tourists will visit.

With these latest iTriage additions for iPhone®, iPod touch®, Android™ and Palm® users, spectators in crowded tournament areas will be assured of finding a medical facility, like Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital – the closest to the main World Cup stadium and the largest hospital in the world with 3,000 beds. In 2001, more than 40 people died and 146 people were injured in that same stadium after a pre-match stampede occurred between local soccer teams.

Incidences like that have South African emergency response teams concerned. Recent reports from South African paramedics cite shortages of staff and ambulances for the tournament. Visitors from around the globe need to know how to access the closest healthcare facility and the GPS capabilities of iTriage can help tourists navigate the crowded cities to quickly find healthcare.

“Coping with a major disaster is difficult for any country, but when tens of thousands of additional tourists are added to a stressed healthcare system, you have the potential for many issues to develop. iTriage wanted to support the athletes, families, and tourists during the 2010 World Cup with an additional medical resource. Now that we’ve added all the private hospitals around the tournament venues, visitors can feel more at ease as they enjoy their tournament experience,” said Peter Hudson, M.D., Healthagen CEO. “iTriage puts critical healthcare facility information into the hands of World Cup spectators, so that when illness or injury occur, all the information needed is in the palm of a spectator’s hand.”

iTriage can also serve spectators with minor emergencies and illnesses. When tourists face an unknown medical condition in a foreign country, iTriage can help. Whether travelers are dealing with symptoms of a migraine or an upset stomach, the application provides information about the best possible treatment and answers difficult questions about the level of care that should be sought.

About Healthagen
Healthagen is a global developer of healthcare information software that empowers patients to make better decisions. Two practicing emergency medicine physicians developed iTriage after seeing a need to put more healthcare information into their patient’s hands. Currently, iTriage is one of the first symptom-to-provider applications available to smartphone users. The application performs as a 24/7 acute care decision tool to help end users find healthcare anywhere in the United States, British Columbia, and now South Africa.

iTriage improves the travel experience by helping tourists gain more information about their symptoms, narrow down the possible causes, then make the most appropriate decision on a healthcare provider to treat the disease. Drs. Peter Hudson and Wayne Guerra co-founded Healthagen – a privately held company headquartered in Lakewood, CO

###