According to Deirdre Mask, author of ‘The Address Book – What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth and Power’, the allocation of street addresses in the 18th century played a key role in fighting disease, delivering healthcare, and lifting people out of poverty. Yet still, in many parts of the world, “it’s a blessing to live in a place an ambulance can find in the middle of the night”.
Since March 2020, virtual doctor visits in the US have jumped from 12,000 per week to over 1 million, with telehealth, the virtual provision of clinical healthcare services, now touted as a major real-world solution to breaking down barriers in our healthcare systems, increasing accessibility and reducing inequality.
In these circumstances, the Korea IT Times had an interview with Pradeep Goel, CEO of Solve.Care which was named as one of the 10 most promising European blockchain startups to watch last week.
Q: Why has there been a rise in virtual doctor visits in recent months?
Due to the fact that COVID-19 is so easily transmitted, there have been natural heightened concerns surrounding visits to healthcare facilities for fear of the risk of exposure to the virus. Globally, there has been a significant drop in the number of in-person patient appointments. In the US, in-person patient visits have dropped by approximately 50%.
To fill that gap, medical practitioners have recently become more open to adopting technology and have started turning to telehealth. This shift towards telehealth is not a passing trend, this shift will endure in the long-term, as evidenced by a recent McKinsey report that found out that 76% of respondents were more likely to use telehealth services going forward. The relaxation of regulations surrounding telehealth by the authorities such as the Center of Medicare and Medicaid services (CMC) in the US has also contributed to this rise in telehealth usage.
In South Korea, where officials have traditionally been reluctant to allow the practice of telemedicine, doctors are now permitted to give over-the-phone medical consultations and prescriptions, at least while the COVID-19 threat still exists.
Q: Tell me about Solve. Care's Global Telehealthcare Exchange? What does it aim to do?
The objective of the Global Telehealth Exchange (GTHE) is not any different from Solve. Care’s main mission; to break down barriers in healthcare and ultimately ease accessibility to healthcare for patients.
In essence, GTHE is a disruptive care network that is built upon Solve. Care’s platform. This platform is designed to host Care Networks or ecosystems that can target specific populations with specific needs into highly coordinated care delivery models. For example, you can build a Care Network tailored to patients suffering from diabetes or any other chronic ailment, and provide them with coordinated care through the use of a digital fabric on the blockchain, allowing multiple stakeholders (patients, physicians, hospitals, insurance, regulators, etc) to stay in sync while maintaining patient’s privacy.
The idea of the Global Telehealth Exchange is to coordinate care across multiple stakeholders, without having to be on a centralized database, which in turn benefits the patient. We realized that there were problems in accessing healthcare long before COVID-19 and we wanted to provide a solution that would be safe and secure for both the patient and the doctor. We also wanted to remove geographical barriers so that doctors and patients would have the ability to connect with each other irrespective of their location. Our goal is to build an ecosystem where patients and practitioners can easily arrange appointments, pay bills, conduct follow-ups and referrals, manage insurance and payments, and share medical records.
We wanted to simplify the effort required by a doctor to start practicing medicine online and to reduce barriers for patients seeking to access physicians remotely.
Q: Why is the GTHE based on the blockchain? What are the benefits of building a healthcare platform like this on the blockchain, as opposed to a more traditional, centralized system?
Blockchain provides the basis for a secure, decentralized platform to collate sensitive patient data, and empower patients to access healthcare on their own terms in a more streamlined and straightforward manner while protecting their privacy. Patients are the owners of their data and have the ability to share it with any medical practitioner they wish to consult with. Greater accessibility means patients have better options when choosing a doctor, without having to waste time recounting their medical history or undergoing repeated medical tests, saving time and money.
Through the GTHE, healthcare providers have complete ownership of their data on the blockchain. They also benefit from the elimination of middlemen when it comes to managing information as well as financial transactions.
Using the blockchain it is possible to provide patients with a highly coordinated care delivery system, allowing multiple stakeholders (patients, physicians, hospitals, insurance, regulators, etc) to stay in sync.
All of this would not be possible if the technology was deployed on a traditional centralized system.
Q: How does telehealth change the way patients receive care? What are the benefits of GTHE for patients?
For the patient, GTHE will remove barriers in accessing healthcare. They will be able to access any medical practitioner no matter where they are in the world. They will have the ability to make instant appointments instead of having to wait for weeks to see a doctor. Through the GTHE, they will be able to view the physicians’ credentials, rates and availability and decide on which doctor would best serve their needs. They would then seamlessly and securely share their medical records with their chosen doctor.
Q: How does it change the way doctors deliver care?
Through the GTHE, doctors can see patients wherever they are, and whenever they want to, while immediately receiving payment for their services. The GTHE will remove the administrative burden from the doctor so that they can focus on practicing medicine and treating the patient.
Q: How do you see the health-tech sector evolving going forward, as the world adapts to the 'new normal' in light of the COVID-19 pandemic?
When we emerge from this pandemic, I expect to see an accelerated wide-scale change in the healthcare sector. I expect to see broad technology-driven changes within the next 2 to 3 years, progress that may have originally taken in the region of 10 years to materialize.
We will see greater adoption of technology to facilitate easier access to care. And also more timely delivery of care. Doctors will become more open to adopting technology in a way that will help them to better serve their patients. We will see a stronger focus on the secure collection and sharing of data, e, while maintaining the privacy of the patient. We will see less physical interactions with more online triage and more tele consults.
Ultimately, we will see a profound change in how healthcare is accessed, delivered and coordinated as people will rely less and less on centralized healthcare systems, and we will see society focus more on preventive care in new innovative ways.
Q: Tell me about yourself
To introduce myself, I'm a CEO and founder of Solve.Care, a global healthcare company that redefines care coordination, improves access to care, empower consumers with information, reduces benefit administration costs, and helps reduce fraud and waste in healthcare around the world.
I have over 25 years of healthcare experience, developing groundbreaking software for the insurance industry, and co-founding four healthcare IT businesses where I have served in a number of management roles including CEO, COO, CIO, and CTO. I have been named one of the ‘100 Most Promising Entrepreneurs Worldwide’ by Goldman Sachs.
