The absence of a reliable cold chain below the primary healthcare level further complicates vaccine distribution and storage. [...] These interconnected challenges underscore the urgent need for innovative solutions that enhance healthcare resilience in the face of climate change, ensuring equitable access to essential medical services while mitigating environmental impacts. Approach: Leveraging Decentralized Renewable Energy for climate-resilient Immunization PATH’s Accelerator for Resilience in Climate and Health (AR [...] Emvolio’s advanced battery-powered medical-grade refrigeration technology can maintain precise temperatures (2ºC to 8ºC) for over 15 hours, ensuring the efficacy of vaccines and sensitive medical supplies in challenging environments over long distances. Deployed across 16 states in India and now expanding to Kenya, Emvolio has delivered resilient healthcare services during critical situation [...] Equipped ANM, MPW and Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) with DRE-powered carriers for last-mile vaccination: Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE)-powered Emvolio carriers enabled the safe storage and transport of vaccines to remote communities, overcoming logistical challenges and ensuring vaccine potency until administration. [...] The focus was on assessing the carriers' efficiency in maintaining vaccine effectiveness during transport and their impact on immunization coverage in hard-to-reach areas. 2. [...] Expanded cold chain infrastructure below the primary level for last-mile health facilities: ARCH placed Emvolio carriers strategically in remote healthcare facilities and evaluated their contribution to expanding the cold chain infrastructure at the last mile. [...] This involved assessing the performance, acceptability, and impact of Emvolio in maintaining the integrity of vaccines and other critical medical supplies across varied climatic conditions in India. [...] This involved analyzing the carriers' effectiveness in mitigating the carbon footprint of healthcare supply chains and ensuring the sustainability and reliability of vaccine transport between health facilities. ARCH carried out comprehensive data collection and analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of Emvolio carriers in maintaining vaccine potency, transport logistics, and cold chain [...] Capacity-building sessions were conducted to train healthcare workers on using Emvolio units effectively, maintaining the cold chain, and understanding the health impacts of climate change. [...] Following field-testing, ARCH plans to advocate for and provide technical assistance to scale up these carriers in other hard-to-reach areas, particularly in the north-eastern and hilly states of India.
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