Finding Gold in Cardiac Rehabilitation

Start up Numen Health is giving a new meaning to comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation at home and the prevention of future cardiac incidents for cardiac patients. Numen Health brings together a diverse team of experts to address the root causes of chronic illnesses and provide holistic patient-centric and value-based healthcare. Pallav Singh, Founder & CEO, Numen Health reveals more to India Med Today about company’s value proposition for patients and doctors, how it plans to plug gaps in the current healthcare system, and how this can have a big impact on cardiac health in India What is the future of home-based cardiac care? According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, taking 1.8 crore lives annually. India accounts for one-fifth of these deaths. In comparison to the rest of the world, India ranks poorly in cardiac rehabilitation. Only one cardiac rehab slot is available for every 360 Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD) patients and there is a need for 33 lakh more cardiac rehab slots each year. This is a huge gap. Among the existing offline centres,NPS (Net Promoter Score - a customer loyalty and satisfaction measurement) is below 35 as it is neither convenient nor comprehensive - catering only to physio exercises, at a cost that leaves a dent in patients' pockets. These are some of the major reasons why despite there being Class 1A evidence about the effectiveness of cardiac rehabilitation (which means it should be given to every patient, thus indicating an improvement in 100 per cent cases), doctors prescribe it only to less than 10 per cent of their patients. With medical monitoring and diagnostic devices becoming increasingly affordable and smaller, more people are connecting to high-speed Internet and low-cost digital models, making care more affordable; the future of such solutions is virtual. Numen is India’s leading and fastest growing virtual cardiac rehabilitation platform with patient and doctor NPS of 75+. Patients get comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation from the comfort and safety of their homes at affordable prices. Outcome parameters achieved by our members are significantly better than any other such solution. How has the company's journey been since its inception? We have become a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation platform, partnering with top cardiologists in the country. Health experts partner with us to deliver comprehensive and affordable preventive cardiac care to their patients virtually. We have delivered more than 2000 hours of patient care to date and has been able to detect early onset of complications in more than 100 cases, avoiding potentially serious events. Doctors have appreciated how our platform brings comprehensiveness to their practice outside of their clinic walls. Patients and their families enjoy the newfound peace of mind. What role is Numen playing in India's overburdened health system? India has a doctor-population ratio of 1:1456, against the WHO recommendation of 1:1000. The problem doesn't stop there. According to the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), 1 in 20 cases are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of discharge, and 1 in 50 are admitted within seven days. This puts an additional burden on the already strained healthcare infrastructure. We addresses both these issues using our technology platform and a team of healthcare experts in pharmacology, nutrition, orthopaedics and psychiatry. Our technology frees up almost 40 per cent of a doctor's time during patient visits or interactions by making sure that what happened between two visits is available in a 10-second summary to the doctor. This solves two problems - It provides a comprehensive data-rich view for the doctor’s better assessment and precision treatment, and this freed up time is spent helping patients better understand their condition and motivate them in their recovery journey. Outside of the clinic, our approach to empathy rooted in science helps patients bounce back to their normal lives, stronger and faster. As of today, zero patients have been re-hospitalised due to the base condition. This ensures that hospitals and doctors have more slots for other critical needs, empowering patients as well as allowing them to receive affordable, world-class care from the comfort of their own homes. Being a health tech company, which new technologies have been implemented in the recent past and what to look out for in future? Our patients today have access to some of the best prognosis tools, comprehensive healthcare services, and a highly skilled team of medical experts at their disposal to take charge of their recovery journey. Through our predictive AI models, biosensors and monitoring devices, we help patients track progress in real-time. The platform helps them and their treating doctors analyse trends and get a better assessment of their current condition and the progress they have made so far, to better calibrate the path forward. These capabilities help us turbocharge the current system to a proactive and predictive one. We intend to continue investing in cutting-edge technologies that will lay the groundwork for a new era of healthcare in India, one that is comprehensive and patient-centric. What challenges were faced during the COVID pandemic and subsequent lockdowns? In many countries, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take its toll, impacting economic stability. Although reported cases of COVID-19 have reduced, doctors continue to warn us about its impact on patients who are vulnerable to heart and lung problems, which contribute to the overall deteriorating health. In the post-COVID-19 scenario, healthcare platforms like ous must come forward to address these issues. And we are doing just that. We analyse the root causes of your chronic illnesses and aim towards addressing further healthissues that may arise. Through our virtual programme, we aim to eliminate fears about your health, from the comfort and safety of your home, while ensuring you continue to enjoy a good quality of life. What are your plans for the Indian market especially in the rural areas? We are on a mission to make world-class healthcare accessible to everyone in India. Through our all-digital approach, we help bridge the gap between doctors and patients. With the expansion of the Internet and mobile usage in even the most remote corners of our country, the scope for virtual healthcare delivery platforms is promising. By leveraging these advancements in technology, we aim to fortify the infrastructure of the healthcare industry. We strongly believe that rural areas will benefit equally, if not more, from our services. How has been your performance in the last quarter and your expectations for the future quarter? We have seen strong referral trends not just among patients but even among our doctors. Over 25 per cent of the doctors have been referred to the platform by existing doctor partnerships. We have seen very strong growth since the launch of our platform. The growth last month was 2.5 times that of the month before. We now serve 50+ cities and have partnered with top cardiologists. The above trends show that there is a real need for the services we offer and we are on a mission to expand to 100 more cities by 2022.