With the introduction of Health2.0 in the mid-2000s and the germination of digital healthcare startups, the sector has undergone new milestones in last 5 years. About 90 percent of the startups evaluated in 2015 were working on preventive healthcare and monitoring solutions, revealed an InnAccel’s report.
The demand for healthcare has been increasing at twice the rate of the national economy. The government aims to increase the current healthcare spending from 1.2 % of the GDP to 3 percent by 2022. Much of this will be executed through public private partnerships and technological support to increase the reach and impact of healthcare services.
Healthcare industry has many options which are available for entrepreneurs to explore and venture. The E-healthcare sector is growing fast that the industry is projected to expand upto $280 billion by 2020 as quoted in the FICCI KPMG report. With the increased usage of Internet & Smartphone’s, healthcare market in India is poised to grow from $100bn in 2016 to $280bn in 2020, hence creating opportunities for Healthcare & Healthtech companies & Startups.
Over the past few years, various business models have been witnessed in preventive healthcare, analytics, pathology, emergency services, among others. Major categories in which India Healthcare start – ups are innovating are Doctor Discovery/Networking Platform, Online Pharmacy & E commerce, Home Healthcare, Health Records & Data Analytics and Emergency & Panic Button Services. These startup models are largely focused on the mass market and enabling access to sections of the population that are far away from reach.
Doctors Discovery/Networking Platform
Currently, India has just 0.7 doctors and 1.1 beds for every 1,000 of its citizens. From the patient’s point of view, sometimes it is difficult to find the right doctor for the particular health issue. Either the issue has to be discussed with near or dear ones who can recommend doctors or patient left with no other option except trying hands on different doctors.
There are more than 900,000 doctors in India and most of them do not have online presence. However, communicating with doctors is difficult either due to their non- availability, or because of time constraint people have or they do not want to spend hours in traffic and waiting queues at clinics to consult them.
To address such issues, apps like Practo, Lybrate, DailyRounds, Docplexus, Medikoe, Livehealth etc are operating and covering major area of the country. Key drivers in this sector are an increasing online population and doctors’ need for higher visibility.
Benefits to the users:
• Provides you with largest network of Doctors
• Help you find right doctor instantly and book appointment online.
• Help you share your medical records with doctors online.
• Direct communication with doctors.
E-Commerce/ Pharmacy
The Indian Pharmacy market is heavily scattered & disorganized with small & local pharmacies, most of which are accessible in urban areas. Online retail forms only a tiny part of the Indian pharmacy market. The Indian securities company Microsec Financial Services predicts it will grow at a CAGR of 14% to 2020. Key drivers for online pharmacies in India are the dearth of pharmacies in rural areas and tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and the relative unavailability of medicines and medical products at physical stores. Also, because of time constraint people have or they do not want to spend hours in traffic and waiting queues at shops to purchase medicines.
Startups like Netmeds, 1mg, PharmEasy etc are catering to the needs of people. Jaipur based MeraPatient App is an aggregrator app for chemists shop & Diagnostics Labs which offers combination of availability, price-discounts and home delivery options from nearby chemists shops & labs.
Benefits to the users:
• Users can conveniently order prescription medicines online & get them delivered at doorstep.
• Consumers privately and conveniently order for medicines from online chemist stores as well as get to avail free delivery.
• Due to competition, numerous discounts are offered to user, which can help them save money.
• Ordering through such stores cater to the needs of people living far from the pharmacy.
• Helps in identify certified Diagnostics labs.
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Healthcare@Home
According to consultancy firm RedSeer, home healthcare market which consists of healthcare services that are provided within the consumer’s home expects the market to grow at a CAGR of 40% till the end of 2018 which was estimated at $4.1 billion in 2016. The potential behind such model is the, cultural shift from traditional practices, growing Indian population and nuclear families. Apps like Portea, Healthians helping people to provide necessary health care at their home.
Benefits to the users:
• Home visits of doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, and technicians for patients
• Collection of samples and testing’s at home.
• Primary Healthcare facilities at home
• Availability of doctors & physiotherapists as per user
Health Records & Data Analytics
Maintaining health records at your fingertips is the need of the hour. The availability of reports, past health related data on mobile phones or on emails helps user to access them anytime and streamline the flow of treatment. This practice also helps to keep the environment clean & green by avoiding use of paper.
Apps such as Portea, NaviaLife Care, MeraPatient, eKincare maintain user records on different platforms to give user an instant access to the data.
Benefits to the user :
• Portea uses predictive analytics of the user to understand health trends in the patient.
• eKincare gathers medical results of the user from various healthcare providers, provides a single repository for users to store all their medical records.
• MeraPatient saves the prescription uploaded by the user on the app. It also saves the reports of the user uploaded by Diagnostics labs.
Emergency /Panic Button Services
Medical emergencies may knock at anytime and arise due to various reasons. One has to be alert and it is necessary to have a plan to overcome such troubles. One of the best ways to ensure patient safety and care during medical emergencies is to contact kith & kin or call an ambulance services. Near & dear once ones will respond immediately in panic situation, and an ambulance is a pre-hospital setup run by a team of qualified professionals. Apps such as MUrgency helps user to book an Ambulance within 20mins. MeraPatient App has a panic button which can send an emergency message to your near ones within 6 seconds.
Benefits to the User:
• Quick help during emergencies
• Safe & Secure treatment
• One just cannot save his own life, but can save other life too
India’s healthcare industry is one of the fastest growing sectors .Besides, Indian medical service, consumers have become more conscious towards their healthcare upkeep. Indian healthcare sector is much diversified and is full of opportunities in every segment which includes providers, payers and medical technology. With the increase in the competition, businesses are looking to explore for the latest dynamics and trends which will have positive impact on Health Care & Health Tech industries.
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