This is the story of how one committed entrepreneur has created a healthcare revolution and is using technology to transform the treatment of patients in India as well as the UK. Samit Kumar Biswas is the Director and CEO of Advatech Healthcare Europe Ltd.
Background
Samit’s father was a state government employee. Samit and his sister were raised in a joint family with his mother and two uncles in Katwa, West Bengal, about 110 miles from Kolkata. He graduated in zoology from Burdwan University, West Bengal, and has an MBA in International Business from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.
As a young boy Samit used to organise pujas and charities in school. His social entrepreneurial skills were quite apparent.
“I supported Helen Keller blind school charity in class six. But joining the World Scouting changed my life. I travelled with my Scout teams, attending camps all across the country. I distributed free water at Lucknow railway station when I was in class eight. I had a dream to make an impact on society doing something different,” he remembers.
Samit's family had limited financial resources. There was no internet or television. “We got electricity at home when I was in class 8 in 1988. We had our own TV in 1989 – a second-hand black and white EC TV,” recalls Samit nostalgically
He watched and listened to BBC, CNN and Deutsche Radio and started winning school prizes for creative writing, recitation and social works.
Samit says that a British Council membership for Rs 200 led to the creation of his business in the UK, resulting in his selection for the Global Entrepreneurship Programme by the Department for International Trade.
Samit worked with Eureka Forbes as Sales Executive selling air purifiers, and then moved to Medtronic as regional head East. It was while working with these firms he discovered the gaps in Indian healthcare delivery. He felt that consumers had few options. “The doctor was god, while the patients were kept in the dark. In 2005 I lost my father-in-law’s elder brother. That was the first time I saw death as an adult. I saw how painful death could be if there was poor infrastructure.”
Turning Point
This painful discovery led Samit to his mission to create a social impact. “In 2010 my wife formed Advatech Healthcare – a company that helps patients take informed decisions with the help of technology, get proper treatment and an expected outcome. I joined the company in 2011. It got the Best Start-up company award and was incubated in STEP IIT Kharagpur.”
Ambition
Samit has an ambition which he intends to bring to fruition. He explains enthusiastically, “My dream is to create a global transportation solution for the disabled (physically and medically), emergency and non-emergency (Hippocabs.co.uk), (BookMyAmbulance.co.uk) and (Ambufly.com).”
With family, friends and self-generated profits, he is funding his new venture running in Essex and West Bengal. He got a small loan and funding from Webel.
Samit's brands are:
Access to private healthcare
In the UK, Samit finds preventive healthcare noticeably absent. “The healthcare demographic and disease patterns are changing. So preventive healthcare is needed to reduce our disease burden and the costs involved. Keeping this in mind we have created a platform where anyone over 40 can check their cardiac profile through MyHealthchk. It costs £199 and offers 26 blood and body fluid tests, an ECG, X Ray, GP consultation and a cardiologist’s comments. Any sort of private medical transportation is available on 08008606727.”
In India, Samit's firm is considered to be a medical tourism company. “We are the first company to be accredited by the Ministry of Tourism as a Medical Tour Operator. We are offering 24x7 ambulance services for corporates like Jons Lang Lesallae, DLF, Tata Power and Maithon Power Limited. We also offer training programmes from one day to three years on First Aid, CPR, and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). Recently we were awarded a British Safety Council Membership. The University of Derby Online selected us as their Indian partner to promote their online courses to Indian students,” says Samit.
In addition, Samit runs the Anand Mela, a very special event, an opportunity to connect with and showcase his services to the Asian community.
“This year we are doing some medical seminars on IVF, joint replacement, spinal surgery, bariatric surgery, cosmetic, dental and eye treatment. We are also organising Meditouria 2017, just before Anand Mela, with all kinds of private healthcare services in the UK and overseas (Poland, Hungary, Costa Rica, India, Thailand, Singapore). We are getting banks, financial institutions, legal firms and airline operators under one roof.”
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“My dream is to create a global transportation solution for the disabled”
Samit Kumar Biswas
