Q&A: Amol Naikawadi, Joint MD, Indus Health Plus

City-based Indus Health Plus operating in the preventive health care space celebrated its decade-long existence. In partnership with many reputed institutions the company vouches that it has transformed nearly 2 lakh families by way of diagnosis, health education, comprehensive and qualitative preventive health check-ups and diagnostics. Pravda Godbole spoke to Amol Naikawadi, joint managing director, Indus Health Plus about the company's future plans and the future of the industry in India.

What is preventive health care?
Preventive health care means detection of diseases at an early stage in an individual through various check-ups which ascertain whether the various organs in the body are functioning properly. This helps the individual to know well in advance if he/she is suffering from any disease. This helps them to take preventive treatment, where in if the disease is at the nascent stage, it will get cured. Preventive health care detects asymptomatic diseases. In case of curative health care, the individual comes to know only when the disease has reached a stage where the symptoms may show and corrective remedial treatment is undertaken. It may become difficult to cure certain diseases at that stage.

 

Has this concept caught on in the Indian market and what is the scope for it in the future?
In a developing economy like ours, Indians are more prone to lifestyle diseases and less than 0.1 per cent of population doing preventive check-ups; the scope for preventive health care is beyond imagination. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is indicated that India is increasingly becoming the capital for various diseases like cancer, heart and various other stress related (lifestyle) diseases. According to the report of The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), 8 per cent of households are pushed below the poverty line each year due to health expenditure.

What are your offerings like?
The services provided by Indus Health Plus are at a very nominal rate, which are substantially lesser than the medical tests conducted elsewhere, at times close to 50 per cent less. With almost all the services under one roof and the entire testing, reports and counselling completed in a single day, this cost advantage is something that Indus is proud to offer to its consumers. Our other unique offering is the Healthfriend card that we introduced in 2005. In India, close to 70 per cent of health expenditure is out of pocket and we understand this. This card is a part of our drive to make quality health care accessible, available and affordable to all. The Healthfriend card enables our customers and their families to access quality medical treatment at highly discounted rates. This card gives attractive discounts across a spectrum of services that are normally not covered under health insurance.

What is the current turnover of the company and what kind of projections are expected for the next couple of years?
For the financial year 2009-10, we have achieved Rs 60 crore. We expect to close on March 2012 at Rs 130 crore.

In how many cities is your current presence in India? Which are those?
Currently we are present in 14 cities across Maharashtra, Delhi, Bhilai and Goa. Indus has offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Nagpur, Nasik, Goa and our tie-ups with reputed delivery partners are spread across Maharashtra- Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Jalgaon, Ahmednagar, Latur, Nasik, Karad, Solapur etc. We have reached out to more than 2, 20,000 customers across the country in our 10 years of operations and are ever-growing, as more and more people are waking up to the concept of preventive health care with us.

How many more cities does the company plan to penetrate and by when?
Our concentration is in Maharashtra and Goa, with a recent entry into Delhi. We aim to reach 30 centres by March 2011, 50 centers by March 2012 and 100 centers till March 2014. Indus aims to achieve pan-India presence by concentrating on multiple location availability of their services for their clientele. Many regional and national health care chains are in talks with us. If these associations materialise, we will achieve the numbers much before the targeted date.

How much investment will be made by the company to meet this target?
The company expects to invest around Rs 100 crore over a period of 4 years.

How will the company raise this capital?
A large part of this requirement will be supported by accruals and debt. However, at the right time, we will raise the capital through the private equity route.

The concept of preventive health care thrives on awareness among people and so how does Indus Health Plus plan to create awareness?
Yes, in this domain, the biggest challenge is to spread awareness. We have reached out to around 1 million families through our below-the-line activities. Through marketing, we have been able to reach a good share of the markets where we exist, but this is an ongoing process. We conduct seminars in housing societies and corporate institutes apart from various above-the-line activities, a 360 degree approach involving advertising, online, as well as non media events to reach out audiences directly. We plan to invest heavily in these media and also concentrate on electronic medium in the next few months. Our regular participation in health seminars, exhibitions and symposiums across India enables us to reach out with our mission on preventive health care to one and all.

Q: What is the market like for this industry in India?
The Indian health care industry stands untouched by recession. Revenues from the health care sector account for 5.2 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), making it the third largest growing sector in India, and further the health care sector is projected to grow to nearly Rs 1,80,000 crore by year 2012 and a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15-17 percent for at least the next 7-10 years. The preventive health care market is growing at a 25 per cent growth rate.

What is Indus Health Plus market share and what is the target?
In Maharashtra and Goa, our market share is around 30 per cent.