Sanjay Govil, Founder and Chairman, Infinite Computer Solutions, a provider of custom technology-based business process solutions, next-gen mobility solutions and product engineering services, shares his views on the growing trend of digital therapeutics, its potential to bring about a positive transformation in healthcare delivery and his company’s offerings in this space, with Lakshmipriya Nair
How has technology empowered stakeholders of healthcare?
IT has made significant contributions to the medical industry, and almost every area in healthcare – from medical tools to pharma development – has been touched by technology.
The major areas now transformed by technology are the service aspects of healthcare, encompassing the use of electronic medical records (EMR), tele-health services, mobile apps, mobility solutions in remote patient monitoring (RPM) and wearables. These technological advances will dominate the future of healthcare as they are changing the way that doctors and patients interact, with an increased focus on patient centered care.
The patients’ overall control of their own care has greatly improved. Patients are now able to monitor their health by using wearables to check their vitals, and mobile health (mHealth) systems offer more analysis of what the numbers might mean. In fact, The Economist recently estimated 2.5 billion people have at least one message app installed on their mobile devices, and according to Activate, that number is expected to grow to 3.6 billion within the next few years. Patients have more means to be proactive about their care.
Physicians can also offer more care options for their patients and improve their own efficiencies. Diagnostic imaging applications, such as ultrasound machines, digital radiography and computed tomography, can both guide diagnosis and inform patients on their issues.
Overall, healthcare providers will be motivated to provide ‘accountable’ care and payers will incentivise both patients and providers to deliver far improved patient results.
How do you intend to become a differentiator in the health tech space?
We welcome the growth of these technology start-ups, as one of the most powerful factors driving the transition to a more patient-centric approach to care is the growing availability, range and use of new technologies.
We intend to stand apart from the market by leveraging our deep domain and technology expertise, as well as our ability to help our customers scale quickly.
For healthcare in particular, we offer near market-ready solutions that allow quick customisation – a concept we call Platformization – that relies on our extensive knowledge of what healthcare providers and payers need in the market. We now provide 25 platformized solutions, and have formed global partnerships with Fortune 500 companies.
Our domain experience doesn’t end there, as we fully understand the challenges of digital transition. For example, our Patient Centered Connected Care (PC3) platform integrates, rather than replaces, legacy systems, maximising efficiency and resources. This, as well as our customisation and integration of the PC3 platform for any payer/ provider, makes us stand out in the crowded market place. Customers also have the option to use the platform as a standalone solution or as a fully integrated system in which the client can collaborate with other stakeholders.
We’re always looking for what’s next. One of our focuses is bots, enhanced by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Natural Language Processing (NLP), and powered by Predictive Analytics (PA). We believe that they are an ideal tool for patients and providers, as they have the power to warn about possible health illnesses before they occur.
How do you intend to be a pathfinder in digital therapeutics, a growing trend in India?
We are very excited about digital therapeutics, and the way digital systems can treat medical conditions, instead of medicine or even surgery. This is a very exciting development that sits at the intersection of science, technology and design.
In fact, Infinite’s PC3 platform was specifically built for digital therapeutics solutions, and the benefits for both physicians and patients include scalability, cost effectiveness, lower barriers to access, and the ability to test which curriculum work best for different patients. Each programme can also be individualised to fit your personalised needs.
It also tackles one of the hardest challenges in healthcare: changing an individual’s behaviour to better their health, which is important when treating chronic diseases and drug compliance. Conventional medical treatments have long struggled with this aspect. Our digital therapeutic platforms have shown an impressive ability to do just that by using latest behavioural therapy science, including group dynamics and game theory, and engaging patients on multiple fronts.
How can your offerings change healthcare delivery in the country?
Our PC3 platform programmes offers patients and healthcare professionals more choices for care with a convenient interface, with a combination of web and mobile access as well as bot interactions. It provides around-the-clock access to an online educational curriculum, and can collect patient’s data using smart devices. By providing easy access to this information and data, patients are able to educate themselves on and track their health issues.
What are your growth plans for the next three years?
In the next three years, we’re planning to leverage our proprietary IT solutions and platforms expanding our healthcare – focus technology capabilities. We aim to be at the forefront of innovation in this industry – our works in bots is indication of our ambitions – and we’ve set aside resources to build new solutions for the market.