Monthly Archives: March 2016

Experience – Future of Healthcare

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There are more than 50,000 apps which track your health on a mobile phone today. There are numerous wearables which track various vital statistics of the human body. There are good number of companies which are helping address various aliments through technology.
There are pure Healthcare technology companies which are removing paper from Hospitals by building software to improve efficiencies.
One aspect organizations and startup’s should focus on is providing experience.
Experience changes everything. The one experience which makes things happen is the feeling of good and satisfaction. Healthcare is is a very important industry which today by any metric lacks in satisfaction levels. Hospitals focus too much on either financials or turn around time or efficiencies or quantity of services provided. Most of the times, the patient experience is either missed or ignored.
Experience is something what we need to focus on. Experience in care, experience in treatment and experience in the way Hospitals interact with their clients.
The feel good experience is what changes the way Health care is viewed and delivered.

Checklist thinking

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Thinking is an art. Winston Churchill once said “Most people think once a year, I practiced to think twice a week and that is why I am here”. So, what is so different and difficult in thinking?
Thinking is simple, but yet very complicated. If we just read what Churchill said, we can understand that there is something more to thinking what we do each day. All of us think, each day, each minute and each second. We are thinking of various things and we are thinking on how to solve problems. We stop at thinking when we find an appropriate solutions, not necessarily the right solution. Many a times we restrict our thinking because we are given a checklist to think.
If you look at a developer, he starts coding when he receives Low Level Design and Algorithm. He will understand the problem, LLD and the Algorithm, but we does not understand is how to solve the problem. He has the blue print of the solution and his thinking is mostly towards writing code, based on the design and algorithm. What is wrong with this?
Limited thinking. That is the key here. Fortunately or unfortunately many of us are in this mode. We receive instructions and immediately our thinking stops. We follow the instructions. It is good and many a times it is encouraged to follow the laid out plan, but it is also very important to practice thinking and solving the problem. In aviation, the Pilot has a series of checklists for any kind, for flying the airplane. There is a checklist for starting the engine, taxing to the runway, takeoff, causing, depending, landing and parking the aircraft. Is the pilot not thinking then? He thinks. They are trained to think in simulations. Even though they follow the checklists, it is left to the pilots discretion as to how to handle the situation. This is checklist thinking.
Even though we have set guidelines to perform any tasks, what we need to practice is how to effectively solve the problem/address the situation following the checklist.

Reading between lines

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When did you hear this last? Today? Am sure you did. “You should read between the lines” is what you get to hear when you are being rejected or something is not working the way you want it to work. Is it really worth reading between the lines?
To understand the line reading between the lines, you will need to first understand why you are being rejected and then start understanding the person or the group you rejected you.
To understand why you are being rejected might not take long. For example, you applied for a position outside your skill set area and the company did not select you for the job, it is very simple to understand that you did not fit into the role. But, if you check marked all the requirements (and you fit into all) and then got rejected, then there is a little thinking which needs to be done. You will need to evaluate what went missing (either your resume did not exactly speak what you wish to communicate or you could not articulate your experience well enough). It is very important.
When I applied for my masters program, the first time my application got rejected. I did not understand why because I was meeting their criteria. The second time too, my application was rejected. This time, I walked in to the Institute to understand what is happening. The admissions office explained that they are categorizing applications based on Industry background (they do not mention this publicly). The first time they picked applicants with Finance background, the second time they were looking at Investment Banking background. I could have lost hope and left it there. But, knowing the situation helped me better understand as to why I am being rejected. Talking to the admissions office gave me clarity. So, the next time I applied I checked with them and then did.
Reading between the lines is important, but either you have to understand what is not connecting properly or the background of the person who is rejecting you. Only then it helps.

Anatomy of Healthcare Startup’s

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Healthcare startup’s have raised close to $10 Billion worldwide in 2015 and the numbers are only increasing.
What is interesting is apart from the e-Commerce, finding Doctors and Networking for Doctors, today’s startup’s are addressing almost all parts of the human body re-defining the way we live.
What components of the Human Body are startup’s addressing? 
 
Brain
Autoimmune
Lungs
Liver
Blood
Heart
Gastrointestinal
Kidney
How is it each of the components are being looked at by technologists? We will go deeper into them soon.

Health hazards in Agriculture

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I wanted to touch this topic because, in today’s world, technology is helping us provide better Healthcare to rural areas.
Rural areas predominantly do not have access to higher Healthcare facilities. Mobile Health camps, PHC’s are helping address the needs, but it is important for us to utilize the power of Mobile reach and device new ideas to help improve Healthcare for farmers.
So, what are the health hazards to farmers have?
  • Farming chemicals.
  • The constant presence of dust, mud and mold.
  • Accidents while using farm equipment.
  • Everyday exposure to the sun all the time.
  • Arthritis
  • Risks of various ailments due to varying weather conditions.
The list is just a beginning. Please do add to the list and also, if you are looking at ideas for your Startup, this list can help you.

Interoperability – Future of Healthcare

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According to the dictionary, Interoperability is ability of a system to work with or use the part of equipment of another system.
Very simple and easy to articulate. But, it is the toughest to execute in the Healthcare space. Most organizations and Healthcare apps work in silos because no one has still figured out how each one can work with each other. So, until then, there will be silence but debates and ideas will exist.
For me, Interoperability does not necessarily mean that each organization has to work with each other and each app has to communicate with other apps freely. Interoperability is a framework and these guidelines are what we should be driving towards executing.
Interoperability is definitely very important component of the Future of Healthcare and it is going to play a pivotal role in the future.

How can Big Data change Healthcare?

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How can Big Data change or transform Healthcare? We capture Insurance information, medical history and wearable devices can track the lifestyle and provide more in-depth information on how the person actually is.
Have you noticed how a couple’s who have been together for longer periods communicate? They talk with their eyes many times. Whereas younger couple speak and share their thoughts and opinions. What happens over a period of time is that one gets to know the other better and mostly each one is proactively involved with each other.
In the same way, initially the data collected by the wearable devices can do a lot of talking and provide various parameters, but only over extended periods of time can the data be providing analysis. Patterns on how various lifestyle’s effect health and how to ensure quality care and take appropriate precautions are just a few things we can analyze from the data we collect. Insurance companies can use data to offer custom Insurance plans which can be more beneficial, Hospitals can provide personalized care, Individuals can themselves monitor and manage their health proactively.
Can Big Data alter the lives? To begin with, Yes. It can. All depends on how we are capturing and utilizing the data.
Do you agree?

Interoperability for Big Data

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You can search for the “most frequent flyer” and you sure will get results. How can the data of one person traveling across continents on different airlines be noticed and tracked? There are two major reservation systems in the world for airlines – <Write the names here>. Anyone buying a plane ticket anywhere in the world has to go through one of these two systems. So, when you search for the most frequent flyer in the world, results are easier to be found.
In America, according to a research, they found out that more than 80% of people are using and tracking Health using, at least, one wearable device (Phone, Step Tracker, Smart Tracker etc). All their information is being recorded and saved.
How do we gather this data and make meaningful use of it? Interoperability is the key here. Organizations which manufacture wearables and store the information should be able to share information with hospitals. Hospitals should be the focus point who gather the data and participate in research activities.
I use a Garmin wearable for tracking my steps, calorie intake and burnt, heart rate and active time. All the data is on Garmin website. When I go to a hospital, to understand my lifestyle, Doctor should be able to pull in my information from Garmin with my permission. This will help him in the better analysis. Second, hospitals should be able to use this information for preventive care.
In India, the PHC which today collects information in the region synchronizes data with the central server. This is how Government takes precautionary measures for any epidemics. Healthcare organizations (Hospitals, Tech Companies etc) should work with the Government to utilize the data for bettering quality of care.
What do you think?

What I learnt from my Mother

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2014 August is when my mother left us. She had been a homemaker all her life, but with her understanding of mythology, she used to share quite a few stories of her life, childhood and learnings from her mother.

Life was so beautiful when she was around. I am fortunate and blessed to be born to her. A decade ago, I started to get into life problems and all the time she used to share her experiences with me and ask me to incorporate them into my life. Being a youngster, her advice sounded old fashioned and used to argue back with her, but there definitely are quite a few points which I did want to incorporate into my life, but to practice them, took a very long time.

Be silent
Whenever there was an argument at home or when I was frustrated while driving, she used to tell me one simple thing – To remain Silent. She says silence is the best answer to the most frustrating moments. People around you will only point fingers at you always. This is because of various reasons, they might find solace in blaming you. The best thing you can do is to remain silent all the time. Silence speaks louder than words.

Be respectful
Never even think of insulting or speaking low of anyone, because this is not a good feeling and it will hurt you back internally rather than helping. So, keep it simple and speak to each one around you with respect and dignity. That will take you long in life.

Don’t keep hurt
There are times in our life when we get hurt because of someone. Don’t keep it in your heart and keep thinking of it because it will take away you mental peace and will not help you grow. If you can, speak to the person and close the misunderstanding or hurt, else, drop it. It is good for you. Just because you are hurt, nothing is going to change for you in your life. Instead, if you drop the hurt, it will give you more happiness and that happiness will help you think of the next step which will bring you more success.

When I asked her how she manages all these things, she said that whenever she felt hurt or someone said something which hurt her, she always used to chat God’s name which helped her.

Very simple philosophies and this is what everyone tells us, but after she went away, these three came back to me always and now am trying to follow them as much as I can as respect for her and better my life.

Direct 2 Consumer

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In this era of Digital Health, Entrepreneurs and Organizations are beginning to reach the Consumer directly in building an ecosystem for their offerings. In Healthcare, mostly Business 2 Business is the prevailing approach.

For a home Diabetic testing machine, earlier Physician/Hospital used to recommend a particular product, but today, manufacturers are reaching to Consumers directly and Consumer is having all the information at their fingertips which is helping them to buy the product of their choice.

Earlier manufacturers used to focus on Business 2 Business, but today this just does not end here. If a consumer is not happy with the offering, the business collapses.

In the Indian Healthcare scenario, Direct 2 Consumer model brings in stronger following allowing for quicker feedback loops and helping organizations to better their service.

For any technology company, the key attribute of the success of their idea is Consumer base. The bigger the signup’s, the larger is the ecosystem. The larger the ecosystem, more successful is the business model. Look at startup’s like Practo who provide Doctor, Hospital, Lab etc search with ratings? Consumers are getting a sneak peak at what kind of service they can expect even before they go. Companies like this will focus on building their consumer base which will help them build an ecosystem. The ecosystem can do more than just merely providing service.

Direct 2 Consumer is just not with Technology or Home use products. It is with all businesses impacting Healthcare.