Pharmaceutical company Dr. Morepen, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Morepen Laboratories, has forayed into healthcare and wellness segment to offer preventive cardiology and diabetology in collaboration with $4 billion Renew Group, headquartered in Singapore.
Dr. Morepen Now has launched its first single specialty clinic in Hauz Khas in Centra Delhi India and has brought in External Counter Pulsation (ECP) therapy device used to assess whether one is prone to heart-diseases. “It’s not about ECP alone. While this technology is available in certain multi-specialty hospitals as well, we want to increase awareness of heart diseases in people and want to offer complete care even to those who do not any heart problems,” said Varun Suri, CEO at Dr. Morepen Now. “Ours is much like a spa cum a wellness centre where people between 40 and 80 years can easily walk in and get themselves checked to see if they are prone to any lifestyle related diseases,” he added.
Dr Morepen Now plans to ramp up the number of centres to 6-7 in NCR region itself. Its focus first is to tap urban cities where lifestyle-related diseases are increasing and thereafter enter tier II cities. Next on its target are Mumbai and Bangalore, said Suri. The company plans to launch as many as 100 clinics across the country over the next 5 years with an initial investment of about Rs 150 crore. The company plans to manage the expansion through its internal accruals and may eventually raise private equity funding. However, Suri, refused to comment anything specific on the plans.
“In India, the contours of wellness are changing. Today, people are more conscious about their health and they want to eat right and want to lead a healthy lifestyle,” said Suri. This perhaps explains the reason behind the increase in number of nutritionists and yoga instructors in the country. Dr. Morepen Now has a mix of cardiologists, nutritionists, trained ECP operators, pathologists, physiotherapists and yoga/meditation experts.
ECP is a non-invasive therapy, which enhances blood flow and feels like a lower body massage. It brings about a host of health benefits while being safe. While it works as a preventive to heart problems, it also is an alternate to bypass and stents. The cost of ECP therapy which typically requires 35 sessions to cure a patient who requires bypass is Rs 1.5 lakh, while a bypass surgery can cost Rs 2 lakh and 5 lakh. The cost of stents will of course depend on the number of stents a patient requires.
The move to enter the healthcare segment by Dr. Morepen is significant as single specialty as a category is booming in many categories of ailments such as eye care and dental care. In fact, with the success of the model of single specialty itself, other categories like oncology and cancer are also increasingly coming in.
BW Reporters
Over 14 years in journalism, I cover corporate sectors and write on M&A, private equity, venture capital and healthcare. I also play the role of an editorial lead for proprietary events like BW Healthcare Awards and BW Young Entrepreneur Awards. I am also a guest faculty at The Indian Institute of Mass Communication (Dhenkenal). Prior to BW Businessworld, I have had stints with Forbes India, The Economic Times, India Today and The Indian Express. When not working, I love travelling and discovering new places - soaking in new culture, food and people. I also like to spend time with my fawn Labrador.
