US Healthtech Startup AkosMD Coming to India

AkosMD was started in the US to facilitate affordable and faster primary healthcare, a basic right which often is too expensive and takes long to access. To reduce costs and waiting time, the AkosMD app user could connect to doctors, have a conversation, receive a prognosis and prescription, and even arrange follow up schedules and referrals.

The founders of AkosMD are now planning to bring the same venture to India to provide affordable primary healthcare access to the millions of Indians who can’t afford a doctor or lives to far from a medical professional. The Indian version of the service will be called Instaa MED. The venture has the backing of Dr.Bindeshwar Pathak, social reformer and founder of Sulabh International, a pivotal figure of the Clean India movement.

AkosMD is a venture managed by US based Dr. Kishlay Anand and Dr. Swaraj Singh. Other successful ventures that they run in India and USA are NRI Family Health, a service that takes care of elderly patients of NRIs. Another venture is imedicalconsult which provides second opinions for critically ill patients rom specialists around the world. The venture ‘kare@home’ is available to people looking at services of care givers and nurses at home.

Chandan Kumar who manages the India business operations for the soon to be launched app said, “Being a bi-national company in the USA, this will be a good value proposition for corporate employees travelling between the US and India.”

Long back India stopped being a provider of affordable care at the primary level or OPD. According to the AkosMD team, cost of visiting a doctor ranges from 600 to 1200 rupees depending on the specialist. Most of the time people do not know which doctor to visit and end up paying twice the amount for the same problem. AkosMD is aiming to make this primary level of consultation available as and when a patient needs it. “The app gives you reasons to not postpone addressing your health concerns for a later date for lack of time. The app makes it is easier and cheaper. You don’t have to disrupt your work schedule to seek medical help either,” said Dr Spurdha Sood, a core team member of AkosMD’s India operations.

Dr. Kishlay, founder of the AkosMD said, “Primary care or OPD as we know is time consuming and expensive in India. Appointments may not be available when needed and if booked, getting to the hospital, parking and waiting in queues can be a challenge. In order to make the experience of consulting a doctor trustable, economical and time saving, AkosMD is introducing this app that will allow patients to in-cognito seek expert advice from doctors about health concerns they face right from their smartphones. Services are not limited to OPD care but patients are assisted with all their needs post consultation. We hope to launch the app in July 2017.”