Kochi healthcare startup enters ME market

KOCHI: ShopDoc, a Kochi-based super-specialty hospital app for patient referrals and smart doctor deployment, has launched three special services for the Gulf countries, primarily aimed at providing quality healthcare facilities to the burgeoning Indian diaspora community across the region.

Incubated by the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), ShopDoc is one of the few selected startups that would be participating in GITEX Future Stars 2021, the biggest startup event in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asian regions, being held at Dubai World Centre between October 17 and 20.

The three distinct healthcare facilities launched by ShopDoc for the Gulf countries include MobeedCare Family Care, an on-demand patient care service to look after the complete hospitalisation needs of the family members in India. The second is U OK?, which is a virtual mental health support clinic to provide economical one-on-one mental health consultations for the Indian expatriate workforce. The third is founders, which is a customised diet and fitness program designed for the expatriate Indian business community.

KSUM Chief Executive Officer John M. Thomas said it is heartening to note that ShopDoc has decided to launch online specialised healthcare facilities with the Indian expatriate community as intended beneficiaries.

“A significant number of international patient inquiries we receive daily are from the Gulf Malayalees. Also, the majority of patients we serve here have got some immediate family members living in the Gulf countries who are often very concerned and confused. So we found it imperative to extend our services for them,” said Shihab Makaniyil, founder and CEO of ShopDoc.

“We all three founders of ShopDoc were Dubai residents before for a long period, and therefore we genuinely understand the healthcare needs and the importance of helping the expatriate community,” said Razik Ashraf, Co-founder and COO, who had previously worked for the Dubai Health Authority’s IT Department before moving to Qatar to lead one of the major ICT companies in the Middle East.

Launched in September 2020 in Kerala and South Karnataka, the healthcare startup currently has subscription customers of more than 2,500 specialist doctors, 175 multi-specialty hospitals and 20 diagnostic chains, processing thousands of patient referrals for various medical treatment procedures every week.