The future is not digital but ‘figital’, says Omar Sherief Mohammad, Country Head, Roche Diabetes Care India, referring to doctors’ feedback that interactions in the post-Covid-19 period would combine a face-to-face and digital approach.
During the lockdown period, tele-consultations had seen a phenomenal 500 per cent increase starting April, observes Mohammad, but a section of doctors indicated that they would lean on both approaches for future interactions. Even as they work with this insight of a “hybrid” approach, RDC has a few digital solutions up its sleeve, including a diabetes care platform for doctors that it expects to launch in the last quarter of the year, says Mohammad, who completes a year at the helm of RDC this month.
Digital care
These projects could not have come at a better time, he says, pointing to India’s plans for a digital health footprint. RDC’s doctor platform, explains Mohammad, would link to its “mySugr” app and allow doctors to have a better sugar-profile of their patients, he says, in terms of food, timing, etc. Otherwise patients may inadvertently communicate only certain details to their doctor, he says, pointing to the doctor’s benefit and clarifying that Roche would have no participation in this interaction. The details would not be stored, he said, and would be accessible only to the doctor and patient.
Protect privacy
Having returned to India from a four-year stint overseas, Mohammad commends the pace of digitisation in India and cites the example of Vietnam where a similar initiative helped eventually bring about 87 per cent Universal Health Coverage.
“It was all coded and put on cloud,” he says, adding that a Government agency under the Health Ministry held the information.
Be it countries or companies, he agrees, they would have to navigate the digital space without compromising on individual privacy. “The authorities should keep it simple, with a specific login for healthcare professionals,” he told BusinessLine, responding to concerns being raised on privacy.
Insulin patch pumps
The other product RDC is looking to bring into India, in a hospital setting rather than as a mass product, is its insulin patch pumps. This would provide insulin shots everyday, he said, indicating that it was for intensive insulin users. RDC is presently seeking regulatory approvals for India and is hopeful of marketing it by mid-2021, he indicates, despite Covid disruptions.
RDC’s sales took a 50 per cent hit in March (compared to February), he said, adding that their partnership with Parekh Integrated Services for warehousing services had since been bolstered to ensure smooth supplies. This new “kit assembly site” will assemble and pack blood glucose monitoring kits to fulfil India’s demands, a company spokesperson said, adding that it was scalable and equipped to meet customised requirements.