Docco360 is a healthcare platform that hosts a no-frills, no-fuss, and easy-to-use web- and mobile-based health App. It connects patients with complementary and alternative medicine [CAM] — Ayurveda, homeopathic, Unani physicians, and health specialists, including nutritionists, among others. The App runs on iOS and Android. It schedules appointments, video consultations, and ordering of medicines, while enabling digital payments. More than 5,000 patients have used the App, so far, and their numbers are only growing.
Srikanth NAMPALLY, CEO, Docco360, unwraps the healthcare start-up’s exciting journey, from the ground up, its strategy and future outlook, among others — in this freewheeling conversation.
TW360: Where did you get the primal idea for Docco360?
SN: Docco360 is the upshot of a simple, yet profound, thought process. It all started this way. We are first generation entrepreneurs. There was naturally just too much of conservatism for us to making, or taking, certain decisions. While building a successful entity was the only expectation, rather than monetary accruals, we had, as may be obvious, nothing more than a limited number of verticals to look at, viz., education, healthcare, family/elderly care etc.
Ours is a large family, full of teachers and professionals — engineers and doctors. Every single family has folks living and working abroad. They have first-hand experience of how is it to be far away from their family, people, elders, resources, etc. This is how the ‘nascent’ idea of health and family/elderly care emerged and propelled us to come up with the concept of a virtual doctor-patient consultation platform for personalised, bespoke holistic healthcare — in other words, connecting patients with CAM doctors online.
Sreenath, a technocrat, who conceptualised the idea, along with me in tow, wanted to contribute something of value. One that was steady and sustainable over a period of time and also bring about a positive impact for users, in particular, and the community, or society, at large. I firmly believe in the famed Theodore Roosevelt adage, “… [The] best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” This explains our philosophy, no less.
TW360: Do you think Docco360 was your eureka moment? And, why?
SN: Yes — primarily because it had the potential to provide boundless scope and opportunity to adding easy-to-use online features and services in CAM/healthcare. By healthcare, I mean holistic healthcare — well, who would not need it in today’s world, more so from the comfort of one’s home? This was our eureka moment. But, our real eureka moment will only emerge when we see a bright, happy smile on every user’s face — what with our online services reaching a majority of homes across the country.
TW360: Yours is a unique online doctor-patient consultation platform with Ayurveda, homeopathy, nutrition, and Unani, under one umbrella? Do you think this is the way to go, and reach the next level, based on the valuable experience you’ve had, aside from a large number of patients’ positive feedback?
SN: Our platform provides a foundation for what we want to do seamlessly online — one which encompasses a broad spectrum of holistic health services that reaches out to anyone that believes health is their first wealth with ease of access. This also includes generating new, or fresh, demand, also mandate, for CAM, its doctors, health specialists, and pharmacies, while helping the holistic health industry to grow through our platform too.
TW360: What’s your background?
SN: I come from a middle class family, the son of two teachers, who brought me up in a highly conservative, disciplined family milieu. This led me to believe that I ought to give a little more than usual to my family and society. I’m an engineer by qualification and I’ve worked for the IT Industry in different capacities. Sales and business development were my forte — my favourite pursuit too. I worked, for the most part, with North America-based companies. After 20-plus years of ‘being there, and done that,’ I thought it was time to doing something on my own and not regret that I did not explore anything new. The healthcare idea was like a ripe, old apple falling on our heads. It did not take long for Sreenath and I to go through long, brainstorming sessions, while seeking the wise, practical counsel, or advice, of our peers, mentors, and others. The result: Docco360.
TW360: Who’s on your leadership team and what’s their background?
SN: Our team comprises of Docco360 co-founders, Sreenath and Raghu, who look after Technology and Business Strategy, and I. I take care primarily of marketing, sales, ‘go-to-market’ forays, administration etc. We have a hugely experienced guiding force — also a panel of senior doctors. This includes Dr Anil Santapur, Dr Raj, Chief Wellness Officer, Docco 360, and Dr N Srinivas, among others.
TW360: What health problems are you trying to help your patients with through online consultations?
SN: Ideally, anything that is a health concern, or ailment, that is not life-threatening. Patients, and others, use our platform for doctor consultation, viz., opinion, First-Aid, identifying the health issue and to taking holistic treatment through Ayurveda, homeopathy, Unani, and nutrition. Our statistics suggests that most of our users seek our online consultation and treatment for allergies, sleep disorders, psoriasis, gut and thyroid problems, among others.
TW360: What exactly is your forte?
SN: We are in IT and Real Estate, but our primary interest is to live and grow with the use of health-centric, ‘foldaway’ technology and innovation, much more than anything else.
TW360: How fast are you growing?
SN: We have never thought that it would be easy sailing and we are prepared for the long haul. What is heartening to us is our enterprise is doing quite well. We are now on the verge of gearing up, and looking ahead, too. We have, at present, over 4,000 users of our Docco360 App and we have done close to 3,500 appointments. Well, it will certainly take amplified effort on our part to leapfrog, and we are diligently pumped-up to doing and getting things done — by adhering to our time-honoured ethos, values, and philosophy. Our motto, to quote Henry David Thoreau, is “Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”
TW360: Who are your main competitors?
SN: Honestly, none at this point. There is, of course, one who has a similar platform with doctors in Ayurveda and homeopathy, but their line of business is different.
TW360: How are you different from the competition?
SN: We don’t have to be different, or try to invent anything new. What customers need and/or catering to them well is a much better proposition, just as much as easy-to-access and easy-to-use services are to delighting them. There is a great deal, also more, that we can do for our customers and win their hearts — and, make them healthy and active in the process too.
TW360: What are the most special, or unique, services you offer?
SN: Quick turnaround time, ease of access and prompt medicine delivery at the patients’ doorstep. This is backed by professional reputation management for doctors and health specialists, among others.
TW360: Going forward, what other products, or services, do you have in mind, or planned?
SN: We are a holistic healthcare platform — we are poised to bringing all AYUSH compliant systems to our services. We have also made concerted efforts to understand the sublime effects of music therapy and therapeutic yoga with our specialists. You’ll see them as a part of our services soon.
NB: If you are looking for a user-friendly App that is a breeze to use and connect with specialist Ayurveda, homeopathic, Unani physicians and nutrition therapists, from the comfort of your home — visit Docco360, right away. Or, just download the Docco360 App from GooglePlay/App Store.
[This interview was first published August 15, 2022].
