Mudit Dandwate, a racing car engineer who was inspired by his uncle's tragic death from undiagnosed sepsis, developed affordable patient monitoring devices for India. His innovation, focused on early detection and intervention, has significantly improved healthcare outcomes and saved countless lives.

At the time Dandwate was working as a consultant to sport carmakers like McLaren when he decided to use his experience of race cars to healthcare. He and his fellow engineer started working on a project that uses advanced sensors similar to those found in Formula 1 cars to monitor subtle vibrations in the human body. 

By observing these micro-vibrations, they tend to gather health data without needing invasive procedures, making it easier and less uncomfortable for patients in hospitals.

Telling about his project in an interview Dandwate said,"We use a lot of sensors, analytics, and artificial intelligence to assess the health of a car.” “And that's where my race car-engineering background helped, because we used some of the same methods to develop a sensor-based contactless patient monitoring system."

Hospitals across the country and around the world often face staff shortages. As a result, doctors and nurses are overloaded with work, which can lead to delays in diagnosing patients, potentially resulting in life-threatening situations.

In such situation health-tech firms like Dozee and others have integrated AI and cutting-edge technology into healthcare to bridge the gap for providing quick assistance and diagnoses to a populous nation.

Since 2022, investors, including major firms like TPG Capital and pharmaceutical companies like Novo Nordisk A/S, have invested a total of $3.7 billion in Indian health-related startups, according to Tracxn Technologies Ltd. 

This amount represents half of the $7.4 billion raised by health tech firms in the Asia Pacific region. Bain & Co. projects that healthcare innovation in India could be a $60 billion opportunity by 2028, primarily driven by pharma services and health tech.

Tackling Covid crisis

 

According to the Tracxn data 170 Indian health-tech startups have disappeared since 2023 after the world recovered from covid. And the remaining those who survived have witnessed a significant drop in their valuation.

Startups are now focusing on expanding in India and entering profitable overseas markets to grow and become profitable.

During the Covid-19 pandemic  there was a rise in online services provided by many healthcare startups but after the end of covid many have face lower valuations as investors favour hybrid models that could address gaps in India’s healthcare.

Dozee, co-founded in Bangalore in 2015 by Dandwate, is valued at around $150 million. It uses sensor sheets under mattresses to monitor vital signs with 98% accuracy, easing hospital staff workloads.

Dozee charges over half a million rupees to integrate its smart beds into hospital systems, with products used in over 16,000 beds in 250 Indian hospitals and 55 in the US. The company has raised $35 million and plans to seek more funding in six months for US expansion.

 

Scarcity of doctors and tech innovation

 

According to the data of World Health Organization India has 7.3 physicians per 10, 000 as compared to a world average with 17.2.The shortage is especially acute for specialist doctors in rural areas, which lack 80% of the needed numbers.

Dhruv Joshi and Dileep Raman, former intensive-care experts at Cleveland Clinic who founded Cloudphysician in India to enable remote monitoring of ICUs. Based in Bangalore, their team of about 120 doctors and nurses serves hospitals in 23 states, from Mumbai to Deogarh. The firm raised $10.5 million in June.

Paramount Hospital in Mumbai  has partnered with theiCloudPhysician to improve its ICU care, increasing confidence in treating critically ill patients and reducing average stays from five to three days.