LUXEMBOURG -- (BUSINESS WIRE) --

SES (NYSE Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) and SES Techcom Services today announced that its innovative eHealth platform SATMED has been deployed to improve childbirth healthcare at the Maternité Hospital in Ahozonnoude, Benin.

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Utilizing SES’s satellite Internet connectivity, the SATMED platform operates as a remote consultation and monitoring tool to provide effective communications between the maternity hospital in Ahozonnoude, the hospital in capital Cotonou and a third hospital unit in Allada. Training for medical and hospital support staff on how to use and maintain the SATMED equipment has been provided, and support to people in the field will continue.

In Benin, the eHealth system provides the only effective communication link between the three units, since the routes are often inaccessible due to flooding during the rainy season. Additional remote training is to be delivered online, enabling midwives and health workers in training to have their performance monitored and evaluated by an assigned physician, improving healthcare at a local, regional and national scale.

Carried out in conjunction with Fondation Follereau Luxembourg (FFL), the installation aims to improve mother-child health during the delivery and aftercare of childbirth, as well as to assist in its general aim of improving medical knowledge via remote consultation and monitoring facilities.

Managing Director of SES Techcom Services Gerhard Bethscheider said: “We are very pleased with the way SATMED is overcoming the barriers often faced in deployment of health services across Africa, where terrestrial infrastructures may be lacking or even non-existent. Thanks to satellite technology, we are now in a position to assist in improving both the speed and quality of healthcare services in rural and remote regions, contributing to change on a much wider scale.”

SATMED, which is led by the Luxembourg government and is the medical component of the disaster recovery platform emergency.lu, has already made significant strides in the eHealth market through its deployment at Serabu Community Hospital, Sierra Leone. There, it was instrumental in fighting diseases by fostering relations between doctors who exchanged specialist medical knowledge for the benefit of patients and public health.

For more information on SATMED, please see http://satmed.com

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About SES

SES (NYSE Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) is the world-leading satellite operator with a fleet of more than 50 geostationary satellites. The company provides satellite communications services to broadcasters, content and internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators and business and governmental organisations worldwide.

SES stands for long-lasting business relationships, high-quality service and excellence in the satellite industry. The culturally diverse regional teams of SES are located around the globe and work closely with customers to meet their specific satellite bandwidth and service requirements.

SES holds a participation in O3b Networks, a next generation satellite network combining the reach of satellite with the speed of fiber.

Further information available at: www.ses.com.

About SES Techcom Services

SES Techcom Services is a 100% owned affiliate of SES, the world-leading satellite operator with a fleet of over 50 geostationary satellites, providing integrated end-to-end satellite solutions and operational services tailored to customers’ needs worldwide. Services offered by SES Techcom Services, which is ISO 9001 certified, include the design and delivery of ground infrastructure and operational services, VSAT networks, broadband connectivity and turnkey teleport solutions. It also develops innovative solutions for eGovernment, eHealth and eEducation, as well as applications for worldwide emergency satellite communications, such as emergency.lu, which provides connectivity within 48 hours in times of humanitarian crisis. An extension of this is the open-access eHealth platform SATMED which offers tools for a wide range of applications, including eHealth records and picture archives, eConsultancy, eLearning and videoconferencing, eGroup and content management tools and eSurveillance.

For more information on SES Techcom services, please visit http://www.ses.com/techcom

About FFL

The Fondation Follereau Luxembourg (FFL) was founded on 7^th December 1966 via the initiative of the French humanist Raoul Follereau. Since 1966, the FFL’s main ambition has been the fight against leprosy and all other forms of leprosy, as well as the promotion of disadvantaged populations in developing countries. In the 1980s and 1990s, the FFL has started to include the detection and treatment of tuberculosis and Buruli ulcer to its main objectives. In addition to this, the FFL offers effective medical aid and support to the most vulnerable, like mothers and children, to improve their living conditions. Today, the FFL’s activities are dedicated to the improvement of the public health sector, the support of vocational training for disadvantaged children, the protection and support to children in need, and the support of national health programs against neglected tropical diseases.

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CONTACT:

SES
Markus Payer
Corporate Communications
Tel. +352 710 725 500
Markus.Payer@ses.com

SES Improves Quality Healthcare Access in Benin (Photo: Business Wire)