Technology has remained the key enabler in driving specialized medical care worldwide. The recent pandemic has reinforced the need to synergise technology and medical care to better coordinate patient care, to save money and to deliver more efficient care irrespective of the geographical boundaries.Madhu Murthy, Founder & Chief Medical Officer, Nod Innovations Inc, Phoenix-headquartered speciality, delivering quality healthcare for infectious diseases and other ailments, is a man with a mission. He says that Nod Innovations Inc has been positioned to be one of the key players in the pandemic crisis response. “Our understanding of the specialty services will help us create a marketplace that will connect patients and facilities to all the required specialist providers. We are currently planning to expand our technology utilization at more than 100 specialty practices and healthcare facilities over the next 18 months,” he adds.

Stressing on the need to syngerise the value of applying technology for establishing a robust healthcare delivery platform, Madhu observes that this technological synergy helps remove the barriers to specialty care, provide cost-effective care and achieve scalability. “Nod platform is built on this synergy of ease of use and is now able to link specialists to patients as well as healthcare facilities across five states,” he observes.

The Journey

The medical practioner has served in multiple leadership roles as Senior Medical Partner, Medical Executive Committee member, Chairperson of Infection Control and Antimicrobial Stewardship Committees over the last decade. “In 2009, I formed a specialty based independent practice, which was later acquired by a larger medical group in 2012. This was the foundation of my entrepreneurial opportunity and helped me understand the processes to establish a successful healthcare business” he says.

Citing consistent delay in timely access to specialists, both in terms of availability of specialist providers as well as the specialist practice geographical locations, Madhu Murthy notes that this was particularly challenging for the elderly patients from rural communities and in skilled nursing facilities. “Nod Innovations was founded with a simple concept of improving the specialty access in a timely and efficient way irrespective of the patient location with a focus on better quality of care. Our technology is built on core value of improving communication between patients and specialist providers.” The platform provides efficient utilization for both patients and providers by its simplistic and efficient design, he notes.

Evolving Telemedicine Industry

Madhu Murthy observes that telemedicine has evolved over the last few years and the current COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption at even higher levels. “The platform is not a substitute for the traditional practice of medicine but has now become more valuable with care coordination of patients at different settings.” Madhu cities connectivity, particularly in the rural settings, as one of the challenges within telemedicine industry. “The other challenge is to establish a good patient-provider relationship via Telemedicine in comparison to in-person visit, as virtual visit may sometimes be unable to offer the full physical examination opportunity as well as the ability to capture subtle communication signs.”

He suggests that telemedicine platform be made less complicated for patients, focussing on user experience and empowering the patient-provider communication experience. “Also, healthcare legislative support would help improve reimbursements and technology accessibility in the rural settings,” he adds.

Technology to the Rescue

Also, the technology has become more affordable with increased adoption, observes Madhu Murthy. “Over the next five years, there will be significant utilization of Telemedicine services across all levels of patient care points. Also, it has been projected to capture upto 30 – 50% of all patient visits in some form or other across the globe,” he notes.

Moment of Sucess

“There are quite a few proud moments as a healthcare professional. The one that really stands out is this opportunity to successfully establish a robust Telemedicine platform and having a meaningful impact on the specialty care access for better patient care outcomes” Madhu Murthy signs off.