In this feature, the Editor-in-Chief of StartuptoEnterprise, Linda Ashok, talks to Joginder Tanikella, a proud YCombinator W19 alum. As a startup founder, interviewing Joginder Tanikella informs me of the many rubrics in healthcare technology.
LA: Joginder, tell us something interesting about yourself, something unique about you, which contributes to your professional success today.
JT: I am a full-stack coder and believe in execution. I think that hard work eats talent for breakfast, and just showing up is a great driver to complete the project. Another fundamental rule I follow is to keep things simple and keep the focus on what’s important.
To make the “perfect” product, we often get distracted by various “cool” features and lose sight of getting the product to market. After all, ultimately, the consumer should critique the product, and the sooner the product is with the consumer or user, the faster and better the feedback we receive to improve the product.
LA: Pulse Active Stations Network has made great news so far. Why don’t you tell us more about it and your work?
JT: Pulse Active Stations Network is India’s largest IoT-enabled smart health kiosk known as the Pulse Active Stations. Each Pulse Active Station measures various health and wellness parameters and, in conjunction with our proprietary AI-based platform, indicates potential lifestyle diseases with personalized recommendations.
As a technical founder with management experience, I find myself well suited to take care of specialists and general responsibilities for my organization. My responsibilities help prepare a realistic product development process and set stakeholder expectations, responsibilities, and end-user requirements.
LA: You mentioned “Internet of Things, IoT,” and the setup of health kiosks across India. In this Covid-19 era, it suggests that your health tech is leveraging Industry 4.0 technology. Would you like to elaborate on this project or the work-in-progress?
JT: At Pulse Active Stations Network, we have designed, developed, and manufactured our novel Pulse Anti Covid-19 Kiosk (PACK), which provides comprehensive support in the following:
1. Collecting the sample for suspected Covid-19 patients.
2. Collect patient demographic data for all future reference and tracking.
3. Collect data on socio-economic status, chronic diseases, and other morbidities.
We have also tried to accommodate the sustainability factor as the operator does not need PPE inside the cabin and saves scarce PPE resources. Optimal care has been taken to sanitize the surroundings to avoid cross-contamination between successive “suspected patients.” Using our PACKs, it will be easier to design treatment – vaccines, and medicines, once we know our target population among the infected.
Our State Govt has much appreciated our solution. Officials as well as leading luminaries from the Public Health Sector. This solution was covered in notable journals such as The Hindu, Indian Express, Inc 42, and Forbes, Japan.
Considering our pan-India presence, we will serve the country’s entire length and breadth. These locations are visited by masses of all economic sections, starting from lower to higher strata. We will create a funnel and outreach for Covid-19 diagnostic tests. And Importantly, people do not need to go to clinics for these tests. Anyone with specific symptoms can be tested while commuting between residence and workplace.
Our locations can also be used as extension counters (in a hub and spoke model) for government agencies to spread information/diagnosis or treatment of specific diseases, including Covid-19.
Our regular Pulse Active Stations kiosks and the Pulse Anti Covid-19 Kiosks can also act as the triage/reception box for suspected Covid-19 cases at the hospitals’ reception areas. Patients may be dealt with at the kiosk and may not need to present to the Covid-19 screening or diagnosis laboratory.
LA: Joginder, what do you think about the entire span of impact triggered by this unsuspected fury in the air?
JT: Covid-19 has indeed devastated economies globally with far-reaching implications. It will take us years to come out of the Covid-19-induced recessions, especially in business sectors such as offline retail, hospitality, and real estate.
However, this despair has also led to new opportunities in various fields, especially in the digital world. Now, more people are turning to online avenues for work and recreation. And startups capitalizing on this new surge in online consumerism are doing well, especially in edtech, telemedicine, OTT media, e-Commerce, and other similar digital business areas.
Traditional models are being disrupted every day. One such instance is that domestic tourism is slowly beginning to reap the benefits of the stoppage of international travel and, hence, international tourism.
LA: Joginder, I can say that you have a distinct leadership since I had known you years ago. Tell us more about life besides being the pivotal force of Pulse Active Stations Network.
JT: I like to keep expanding my horizons by reading a wide range of literature, including fiction and non-fiction, of which my favorites are history and natural history. Apart from reading, I like to explore the human body’s possibilities by practicing calisthenics and athletics, such as running.
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Linda Ashok