QUEEN’S ROAD: Now undergoing any kind of medical diagnostic tests at your doorsteps is a click away.
PathDoor.com, a Bengaluru-based technology startup, is bringing almost every kind of pathology lab service to the patient’s doorstep and providing free test sample collection services across the city.
It is also expanding its at-home lab services to Mumbai and Delhi to make a push for the emerging home healthcare space and take it to the next level.
PathDoor.com is a portal in the form of a website and offers call to order telephone services. It acts as an interface between various pathology laboratories and users. Their services rolled out last year and are slowly gaining popularity. They are currently doing up to 100 tests on a daily basis and hope to do more.
This is the brain child of Dr Ketan Jhunjhunwala who has a family run charitable laboratory which has helped him in understanding the intricacies of the diagnostics market. Dr Kunal Patil who heads an IT company, TechSplurge and Niharika Goel, who is an MBA graduate, are also part of the venture.
Niharika Goel, Co-founder and CEO, PathDoor.com says, “Our website is user friendly and a patient can search in terms of area, labs, tests and prices. We truly stand for cost free convenience and transparency. Thus, we are working towards systematising a market involved in 70 per cent of all medical treatments: the diagnostic lab market.”
Range of tests available
A PhD in Clinical Neurosciences, Dr Ketan Jhunjunwala, co-founder says, “We have our in-house team of lab technicians for collecting blood and urine samples. For portable X-rays and ECG, we have tie-ups with labs providing these facilities. Some of the tests commonly availed at home are: CBC, HbA1C, TFT, Lipids, Pre/ Post Sugar, HIV screening, Vitamin D/B12, Uric Acid and Urine routine. MRI and CT scans are also frequently chosen for which we send the patient directly to the desired lab and offer discounts. The discount percentages range from 10-40 per cent depending upon the lab and the test.”
In case the test cost is below `500, the patient has to pay `6 per km depending on the distance of his/her home from the lab. If the test cost is above `500, home sample collection is done for free.
Dr Jhunjhunwala elaborates, “Since sample collection is usually done while the patient is fasting, we get a majority of our bookings one day prior to the day of sample collection. In case the call is made on the same day, it takes approximately 45 minutes for the technician to reach the patient’s place. The ‘at home’ part of lab testing involves only the sample collection. It is challenging when the patient is obese or is a child. However, we have technicians trained to take care of these situations.”
Neena, a diabetic patient who has availed this service says, “It is very convenient and as I require blood testing once in three months, it is also cheaper.”
Elderly patient Gayatri, who feels comfortable undergoing tests at home, says, “Earlier, it was difficult for me to go on my own to a lab and this facility has come as a blessing for people like me who are no longer mobile. Further, the cost of tests is reasonable and we can choose the lab.”
Dr Ketan Jhunjunwala adds, “Being a doctor, I used to see the practical problems being faced by patients in every day testing and realised that there was a gap in terms of transparency in the pathology laboratory market in India. I strongly believe that an effective and fast path lab service which can be delivered at home will provide immense support in faster medication process.”
How to go about it
Patients can get tests done in two ways: At home, where a patient can book an appointment in the lab of their choice, for the time slot convenient to them, and avail a discount and get the test done.
Secondly, at the pathology laboratory, a patient can book an appointment through their website in the lab of their choice and avail a discount when they visit the laboratory to get the test done.
Advantages
A patient using this service will be offered the following features and advantages: discounts on all tests, first-of-its-kind price comparison of desired tests between different path labs and getting the best deal, option of getting tests done from two or more different labs with the help of a single prick, fixed home service in case of patients with conditions requiring repeated tests such as diabetes and thyroid problems and getting home service for niche tests.
Certain tests are done only by particular labs. In case such a lab does not provide home service and is far away, the patient can avail their service and easily get it done. For details visit www.pathdoor.com