Company taking the franchise route to scale up operations and clinic count India-wide
Delhi-based health-tech startup My Family First intends to open 500 Digitally Enabled Smart Health (DESH) clinics in rural areas across the country in the next two years to connect patients in remote villages and towns with medical specialists in metro cites. The company, that began operations in mid-2021, has already opened 30 DESH clinics across Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Madya Pradesh through the franchising route.
Dr (Maj) Harshita Surange, Founder & CEO, DESH Clinics said, “Rural areas are unable to harness the best of doctors through the telemedicine facilities currently available. The conventional telemedicine model requires a tweak. DESH clinics go a step ahead and offer an ‘assisted tele-consultation’ model. A trained paramedic stationed at each clinic assists the city-based doctor remotely examine patients and measure their vital parameters. Assisted tele-consultation is an important step towards safety and efficacy of the tele-medicine business to scale healthcare to the remotest patient in India. DESH clinics also allows networking with existing hospitals to support tertiary-level care, allowing them to manage hospitalisation needs of their patients.”
Ajay Sharma, Co-founder and COO, DESH Clinics said, “We are on an aggressive growth path and have chosen the franchise model for rapid expansion. We would be opening 500 DESH clinics by the end of 2023 at the rate of 15-20 new clinics each month. Anyone with qualifications in pharmacy, medical lab technology, GNM, ANM, and trained health workers can own and run a DESH clinic with an investment of only Rs 2 lakhs. We have also launched a starter pack for new entrepreneurs. Anyone having a suitable space for consultation and a smartphone can start DESH Sahyogi clinics with an investment of only Rs 5,000. They can upgrade to a higher level of clinic infrastructure later.”
When patients arrive at a DESH clinic, trained para-medic staff collects information about their health condition, enters it into a mobile app and arranges tele-consultation with a doctor located in a city like Delhi, Mumbai or Bengaluru. The paramedic staff conducts pathology tests, if required, and uploads the report to be analysed by the doctor. The doctor writes the prescription, which is printed and given to the patient, who can then take medicines from the clinic’s pharmacy or anywhere else.