Lost Your Health Records Again? Don't Fret, They're One Click Away
On healthtech app Eka Care, you can digitally store all your prescriptions, medical reports, vaccine certificates and more
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune and in immediate want of a partner must 'swipe right' on Tinder—a 21st century private ball where gentlemen court young ladies for dancing and other spirited activities. But what, pray, is the man to do if he is in urgent want of a suitable blood donor or a physician's assistance? This is the dilemma that Vikalp Sahni, founder and CEO of Eka Care, found himself confronted with two years ago, although in less Austenian terms.
Vikalp Sahni, founder and CEO, Eka Care
"Eka Care was founded in December 2020 by me, Deepak Tuli and Abhishek Beggerhotta with a vision to build a digital healthcare ecosystem in India," says Sahni. He adds, "Previously, I had worked as a volunteer architect for the Aarogya Setu app. During this time, I realized the gap in the healthcare sector for the systematic tracking of individuals' health profiles, which eventually led to the inception of our health-tech company."
Last month, Eka Care raised $15 million in a funding round led by Hummingbird Ventures, with participation from 3one4Capital, Mirae Asset, Verlinvest and Aditya Birla Ventures. According to Sahni, healthcare services in India are broadly of three kinds: guidance, support and tracking. While several companies provide patients with guidance and support in managing their healthcare needs, such as Practo, mFine, pristine care, and 1mg, there are fewer providers of world-class services in tracking a patient's health profile. Further, believes Sahni, the Indian healthcare sector has historically been transactional, facilitating services for a single outcome. "However, health is different and is generally measured as longitudinal by doctors, and having longitudinal health history helps care service providers to deliver better health outcomes for their patients. Eka Care is the only company in India working on creating 360 degree longitudinal health profiles for patients to help track their health history and identify future health issues," he claims.
A patient's health profile constitutes their medical history (vaccination records, family health history, health allergies and issues) as well as a health journal of body vitals and mental and emotional well-being. This information helps create vital health trends, which doctors can access to provide patients with better health diagnoses and outcomes in future and during the case of emergencies. Eka Care claims that its offerings—Medical Health Locker, Heart Rate Monitor, Self-health Assessment, ABHA services, Health Journal for patients and an advanced EMR tool for doctors—sets it apart from its competition.
Currently, the startup claims to have 7,500 doctors using its EMR tool and over 3 million customers trusting its healthcare platform. "As we are not focusing on single-use transactions, our growth charter requires patients to understand why and how to manage their health profiles. We will achieve this by educating consumers at the time of consumption of health-related information, for which organic channels will play a significant role for us," states Sahni.
