Medybiz, the Bangalore-based healthcare services and disease management organization, is initiating a massive expansion plan and is setting up 25 centres to offer counselling services across the country. All these centres are expected to be in operation during the current financial year. The company is also planning to introduce eight healthcare products as part of its patient care services by December 2007.
The company, which has already established its centres in 10 major cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Pune, Kochi and Guwahati will upgrade its existing satellite centres in Jaipur, Lucknow and Chandigarh as main centres by June 2007. The rest of the centres will be set up in first tier cities across the country, targeting patient care through top prescribers, informed company sources.
Each centre, coming up with an investment of Rs 30 lakh, will operate independently with a business manager leading a team of medical and paramedical professionals with doctors, dieticians, physiotherapists, psycho-socio counsellors and pharmacists. All centres will have drug licenses to stock and sell pharmaceutical products.
Medybiz, claimed as the first company from India to become the corporate member of the Disease State Management Association of America (DMAA), is also planning to introduce three patient care products of foreign companies in India, on disease management focusing prevention of disease occurrence.
The company has tied up with the Swiss-based Cardguard company to launch a high-end technical product kit with facilities for the patient to test ECG, sugar level, blood pressure etc at home and to transfer it through blue tooth technology using cell phone. The product will be launched through the centres within two months. A high-tech test analysis centre has been set up at Chennai to handle each test results from various parts of the country.
It is also warming up to conduct a clinical trial on saliva-based instant HIV testing kits in 500 students across the country soon. The product is already approved by WHO and CE and is available in several foreign countries, according to sources. The company will also commence distribution of a pain balm from a foreign company and other five products from domestic firms for patient care and distribution through its centres.
"We are planning to be the largest healthcare management company in India. During the last six months, we have recorded a growth of 125 per cent and the momentum is expected to accelerate with the new products. We are expected to add another 100 per cent growth in the next four months," Rajendra P Gupta, executive director and CEO of Medybiz told Pharmabiz.