The Scope of Medical Invention in India With Dr. Darshan Nayak
Medical jobs in India are on the rise - be it the various medical cases being reported across the country or the scope of research that comes with them, medical professionals from across the world are heading back in numbers that medical facilities haven’t seen before.
Continuous medical education is a part of any professional who chooses a career in the field of medicine, but there are very few who choose the path of invention instead of the conventional clinical practice. Even though the field is highly competitive, it sees lesser numbers because of the unattractive packages these professionals are offered in the country. With the slash of the medical budget for 2014-15, the numbers have fallen further.
But we got in touch with someone whose agenda wasn’t money making, it was making the medical sector in India more efficient than it is now. Dr. Darshan, the man behind Relligo took the path less travelled and today, is an inspiration to all those medical professionals who really do want to make a difference but are bound by financial restrictions.
Found via Stanford
Relligo, a Stanford India Biodesign startup, provides low cost limb immobilization devices for use during Road Traffic Accident injuries. The case progressively tracks the start up and the issues they face in scaling up and marketing a low end device. It explores the challenges faced by entrepreneurial ventures catering low cost solutions.
Q. What is the story behind your medical invention, Relligo? How did you come about that idea?
Dr. Darshan Nayak: The idea was conceived during my fellowship at the Stanford University, which was a joint program with AIIMS, New Delhi. The fellowship’s primary aim was to study the Indian healthcare settings, recognize the unmet clinical need and build a solution for it.
During my stint, I observed that a lot of patients were wheeled into healthcare facilities post road accidents. Even though there were paramedics transferring them from the ambulance to the hospital facilities, it wasn’t as smooth as it was supposed to be. Most of these accidents result in lower limb injuries, and a lot many cases got aggravated during the transfer.
There were a couple of reasons behind these cases - either the orthopedicians attended these patients after hours, or the splints at the hospital which are to be provided as basic treatment immediately were not designed for immobilisation of limbs. The ambulance splints are more often than not property of the company the vehicles belong to and hence, sharing of equipment with hospitals doesn’t happen.
Apart from that, during injury examination, a lot many doctors open up the paramedic bandages and put it back together; which may or may not be good enough for use by then. There came the need for something that could be easily removed and put back on the injury without damaging it further.
Most road accidents causing lower limb injuries are either around the ankle or the knee; the serious ones near the hip joint. Since a lot of muscles are impacted during such accidents, they can cause a piece of the bone to jut out of its original structure and cause heavy bleeding. This added a new angle to our observation - the need to build something that prevents these muscles from pushing the bone out as well as provide a unique kind of stabilisation till treatment.
Before we came to a conclusion that this was an unmet clinical need, me and Mr. Pulin Raje, who was a part of the Stanford-India biodesign fellowship did an extensive research on the existing devices in the medical sector. We observed that even though the ambulances were equipped with splints, there was a possibility that each one did not have them in all sizes. Here came the need for creating something that fits all and yet, doesn’t take up much space in the ambulance - compactness.
Another need came in when we observed that the wounds required to be washed before bandaging to avoid any kind of infection; which pointed us towards using a waterproof material for our invention.
During the fellowship, we also took an in-depth look at the purchasing decisions before building the product. We made a simple business case - invention of a simple device to stabilise an injured limb at an affordable cost. The invention saw several prototypes that failed because of medical assumptions and the inability to choose the right material. But in the end, it all worked out.
Q. What are some of the tips you would like to share with medical professionals who have just begun their career and young medical students who are trying to choose a specialization?
Dr Darshan Nayak: For me, biomedical research and invention became a full time career; not choosing clinical practice was entirely my call. The job of a medical inventor seemed far more fetching than that of a physician. But then again, that is a personal choice.
For professionals who have been in the medical field for sometime now, switching to inventory can be a bit of a task. They will need to get aligned with ongoing biomedical researches and collaborate with others to get more exposure. But there are very few who make this choice and those who do, often end up running their own practice with their invention; instead of turning it into a product that is available to all across the medical sector.
As far as students are concerned, there are very few who fully understand that the scope of medicine isn’t just limited to clinical practice (surgical and non-surgical), but also inventory. Those are who are aware are usually bogged down with lack of funds and guidance.
I suggest that before a medical chooses his career path, he needs to not just read up his course material but also a couple of success stories across the medical sector. This not just encourages them more, but gives them a look into the possibilities that medicine has to offer.
Once you decide where you want to be, I strongly recommend having a mentor who can guide you through the process and save time from being wasted on lost causes; it gives the students a platform to start somewhere, irrespective of the field they choose.
Another thing that I would ask students across these medical institutes to do is, question everything they see in the medical sector - what practices are being followed and why they are being executed by just about every medical professional there; these questions should be the starting point of their career. There is a dire need to become a part of ongoing researches, or conduct one in collaboration with others to recognise the problems that aren’t being catered for yet, the deficiencies in the system - after all, someone needs to bring them into attention for them to get fixed!
Q. Many Indian doctors tend to go abroad. What are your views on it? What are the advantages of working in Indian healthcare sector according to you?
Dr. Darshan Nayak: There are primarily two reasons why medical professionals and students move abroad - quality of training and stability in terms of career as well as finances.
The current situation in the US healthcare system is so stable that the scope of bringing a change is almost next to zero. You are required to go by the book and the medical facilities run like business organizations. Even though their training programs are highly recommended, pursuing a career there might not be as encouraging. The ability to create an impact in their healthcare sector is questionable.
On the other hand, the Indian healthcare sector is improving in terms of the training offered post medical graduation. With a number of lesser known medical cases being reported from across the country over the last few years has increased the scope of research and development.
Check Indian doctors discuss case studies in the field of orthopedics here
And since the system is still in its developing stages, they are open to changes. You are given the opening to innovate as much as you can to resolve the identified issues in the sector and serve the people more effectively.
Apart from the wider scope of research, the overall costs of innovation are much lesser than those in the US since the aim is to offer efficient medical care at lower costs. The market too responds well to new inventions instead of sticking to what they use conventionally.
All in all, I would say India is a great place for a doctor to dabble into entrepreneurship.
About Doctor Darshan Nayak
Currently running a consulting business, Dr Darshan is helping the biggies of the medical sector to recognise the unmet clinical needs of India and align themselves with entrepreneurs who are innovating to resolve those issues. He is helping them realise that India has a medical market of its own kind and the products that are being sold abroad might not cater to the needs of the people here.
Are you considering a career in medicine? Have you ever thought of dabbling in innovation instead of just clinical practice? If you are the kinds who would rather take up a challenge and resolve it rather than go by the book, but are being bogged down by healthcare sector myths, let this be your inspiration.