Bengaluru: Epharmacy
1mg Technologies’ chief executive Prashant Tandon has set up a small team of
data scientists whose only job is to tinker around with available data and come
up with interesting models with a potential to be turned into products in the
near future. The idea is to diversify and offer more to customers. Such
experimentation is gaining ground among ehealth players, who are venturing into
new territories such as insurance and private label medicines by making use of
data like never before.
“I have a
separate team working on data. It is not for the current business, but for
next-generation artificial intelligence. A few years down the line, it will be
a differentiator,” said Tandon. “Platforms are coming up with the next level of
engagement with patients now. The ecosystem is actively looking at it.” Max
Bupa recently introduced Max Bupa GoActive Health Insurance Plan, along with
GOQii, Practo and 1mg. The insurance plan offers services such as inpatient
hospitalisation, on-the-go access to OPD, diagnostics, personalised health
coaching, second medical opinion and behavioural counselling. Practo has also
partnered with ICICI Lombard General Insurance to offer outpatient insurance
products.
Such new avenues
could throw up data in addition to the already existing and growing data from
primary businesses such as emedicines deliveries, econsultations and
diagnostics. The mushrooming data could well pave the next big leap for the
growing ehealth industry. Online pharmacy Med-Life too is working on similar
data use cases and is close to signing an outpatient insurance partnership as
well. Besides, it has come up with its private label generic drugs, Pure
Generics. It is looking at launching about 30 generic drugs and 40
over-the-counter products by the next financial year. The company expects ₹100-crore revenue from
its private label, under which its first offering will be aparacetamol 650 mg.
Using data
science, we can now predict next week’s medicines with 94% accuracy. Also, we
are able to club almost 2.8 order deliveries on average on a single run. Use of
data science will help us predict outbreak of diseases
Faizan Aziz, CEO
of Myra
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