The Covid 19 pandemics have exposed the deep vulnerabilities and inherent gaps of India's healthcare system. The outbreak of covid 19 poised both a challenge and an opportunity for Indian healthcare startups. Despite several inherent challenges, startups promptly engage themselves and develop solutions for the COVID-19 applications in the areas of prevention, detection, disruption, management, and operational efficacy, and have provided innovations in medical goods and services. So, we at Medicircle present the Healthcare Startup Series wherein we interview the healthcare startups which have shined through in this pandemic.

Jaswanth Matam is the founder of HealthAnlytx and a leader with successful business execution capabilities. HealthAnlytx is building healthcare analytics and telemedicine applications. Through these applications, the platform aims to provide health care consultations and different kinds of health care services to people in terms of doorstep diagnostic tips, online doctor consultations, and wellness for B2B and B2C sectors. The platform provides personalized health care services at a convenience. It also aims to deliver integrated healthcare solutions for personalized and prevention-focused healthcare to improve one's life. 

Healthcare Startups Contribution to Economic and Social Growth

Mr. Matam says, “If we compare pre and post COVID world, in the pre COVID world there were a lot of startups who started off with providing telemedicine solutions, e-pharmacy, and diagnostic services. Being in the healthcare industry for the past five years, I've seen a significant amount of change, especially behavioral change in the way healthcare is now consumed by people. I have observed many healthcare companies that have emerged in recent times especially in the last two or three years. The contribution from these companies directly benefits the Indian GDP and the overall economy. According to a study, there are close to 3300+ healthcare companies and it is estimated that the healthcare sector alone will be generating around 40 million jobs by the end of 2030. There is immense potential in this sector and healthcare startups and healthcare entrepreneurs can create a direct impact for the government and economy.”

Health Analytics the New Normal?

He explains, “I would like to acknowledge a small problem or gap that mostly all of the digital healthcare sector is facing. So in a previous team health-tech startup, I've seen a serious problem wherein many healthcare companies were concentrating to provide healthcare service to the patient or consumer. This is where they are unable to close the loop. It is like they were running a healthcare company as a fashion or an e-commerce company. The mindset was that if you want a diagnostic test or a doctor consultation, you can go to an online store and book a consultation and you're done. This caused many companies to not close that loop. So, that is how we thought analytics would come into the picture.” 

“We could solve this problem, wherein we can help the consumer or the patient understand their health insights and then act accordingly. This will help them get better health and move towards their health goal. So, that is how HealthAnlytx was born. HealthAnlytx as a product offers a combined analysis of the user's healthcare, their past medical history, their current medical condition, their parental history, their lifestyle, and their pathological findings. HealthAnlytx analyses those elements and then predicts the risk of a person getting comorbidity in the future. This is how we show insights to the person and act accordingly so the person could get proper healthcare.”

HealthAnlytx’s Aid to Corporate Employees  

Before answering Mr. Matam explains his own lifestyle, “I belong to the corporate world and I have a very bad lifestyle. I work a lot and am always glued to my computer screen. And once I go to my office I have no proper timing for lunch. And then I end up eating a lot of junk food. So there is a very different lifestyle for our corporate employees. Living such a lifestyle has to change. But this lifestyle is inevitable. And changing a lifestyle is like a revolution that cannot happen soon. Instead of hoping for a revolution, it is better, we prevent it so that we don’t face adverse effects. This is where HealthAnlytx could help a corporation itself to understand the health of its employees at a macro level."

Adding, "We've designed a system where, for instance, a corporation can see that out of the 500 employees in their company,  200 employees are not following good sleeping patterns. Then there are 50 to 60 employees who have existing comorbidities and another 70% of employees feel stressed at work. Not only that, but we can also have clear segmentation to which category or department these employees belong to. Like many employees in sales have to travel a lot .then this category is prone to facing more pollution. OR engineering teams who are always glued to their screen as they always sit and code. Living such lifestyles can lead to anxiety issues, stress issues, or hypertension. HealthAnlytx provides data breakup and correlation to the corporate, so they can act and provide better healthcare for their employees. Ultimately employees make an organization definite. If employees are healthy it will help the organization also grow."

COVID induced change in Healthcare 

He tells, “Indians still believe that a doctor's touch can heal. Even my parents and grandparents show a preference for physical doctor consultation. This was pre-pandemic but post-pandemic there was no scope of going to the doctor, as they were themselves not seeing any patients. So there is a transition pre and post COVID. A study says that 70% of general health conditions can be treated online. So, I am noticing more people are adapting to telemedicine, and then there was a study saying there is a 100% increase in consultations. People are also opting for doorstep healthcare services. Personally, when my mother was not well, and we couldn’t admit her as it was peak time COVID. We then arranged an online consultation with a doctor who suggested taking care at home. We had a nurse who used to come to our house on a daily basis and change those IV fluids. So nowadays people want healthcare to come to their doorstep."

Finances of HealthAnlytx 

Explaining their finances he speaks, “We are completely bootstrapped and we want to bootstrap it till we can. I think even without funding we can still go ahead because we've seen there is a lot of scope and immense response from our customers. Over the last one and a half years, we have grown 10 times."

Words for Future Entrepreneurs 

For the budding entrepreneurs, he provides, “One message that I wanted to give is that entrepreneurship is the only way to increase India's economy. If someone has an idea they fear they cannot implement it then believe that things have changed. We've got Startup India, Stand-Up India, Vocal for Local and other initiatives that the government is providing. Recently, the government has started a Startup Seed Fund scheme, where they're providing up to 50 lakhs Seed Fund for new startups. Then there are a lot of network opportunities that the government provides, there are so many fellow entrepreneurs, who are already there in the system who can help you 24x7. So, if you have an idea, this is the right time to roll up your sleeves and start. This is how we can generate more jobs, and contribute directly to the Indian economy.”

(Edited by Priyal Shah)

Contributed by: Jaswanth Matam, CoFounder, Products, and Strategy, HealthAnlytx