Blockchain Technology is not limited to Cryptocurrencies only. In fact, all the industries in the world will feel the wave and impact of Blockchain Technology. Vijay Reddy is the CEO of Synthium Health, a blockchain healthcare marketplace, disrupting the Healthcare industry. In this interview, Vijay will tell us about SHP Token, the benefits for us and the Synthium Health project;
1) Could you please tell us a bit about yourself?
Right out of Masters in Computer Science, I started my career in the healthcare industry in the year 1991 and since then I’ve been working in this industry in various capacities. Back in 2008, I started working on a project called “Clinical Knowledge Base” and while working on that, I discovered that cost of supplies is the second largest expense of any healthcare entity first being labor cost. I also noticed that there is a need for a single integrated platform for supplies specifically for where healthcare providers and suppliers/manufacturers can communicate and conduct business efficiently. There is also a need for automation of processes within a healthcare entity. For example, medical devices such as implantables and other surgical supply requisitions are still handled manually. I believe that bringing these into automation, can help reduce costs for the providers which in turn can increase the bottom line for smaller, otherwise invisible medical device manufacturers. And hence, Synthium Health.
With the vast knowledge and experience accumulated over the past 25+ years in the healthcare arena, I wanted to make a contribution by way of innovation and help wherever I can to improve efficiencies.
2) What is Synthium Health?
Synthium is the only intelligent, blockchain enabled healthcare technology platform that addresses supply chain participants in Health Industry by seamlessly linking Manufacturers, GPOs, Distributors and Providers. Synthium saves healthcare providers time, money and efforts to procure products at best active price and just-in-time delivery while keeping track of transactions and charge-backs. For Manufacturers, GPOs and Distributors, Synthium provides a transparent platform to maintain, update and track all transactions from sourcing to settlement and enables on-demand reporting.
Michael Porter of Harvard Business School and Elizabeth Teisberg of Dell Medical School of the University of Texas, formulated, value in healthcare is “Outcomes that matter to patients divided by cost of delivering those outcomes”. Synthium’s core mission is to improve value and efficiency in healthcare supplies space.
3) What inspired you to launch a Blockchain and Cryptocurrency business with Synthium Health?
My first introduction of blockchain came from BitCoin. I started learning about blockchain a couple of years back and started understanding it’s importance in healthcare which has multiple players and trust issues. As an entrepreneur, I always look for opportunities and I am very passionate about healthcare and technologies. I watched ICOs soar in 2017 and decided to take a step. I also recently launched a LinkedIn group “Healthcare Blockchain”, which currently has over 730 members, who share similar passion and it is growing daily.
4) What makes Synthium Health crypto ICO different from the others?
Most ICOs start with an idea or whitepaper. We believed in our vision and we invested our time and resources before we took the ICO path. Our supply chain platform is fully functional with a few small transactions taking place and we ready to take on larger clients. It took us a good 3-4 years with over 27,000 man hours to build this comprehensive, user friendly platform. We also have a very active advisory board who are experts in healthcare industry, who we believe will help us spread our roots.
5) How much do you intend to raise in the SHP Token Sale?
Our goal is to sell 200 million tokens.
6) Why would Synthium Health increase in Equity and Value and how can SHP Token holders Profit if they invest now?
Apart from being able to trade on the exchanges, SHP token also has a secondary market with added benefits, in other words it is a utility token. It is designed to gain membership to the platform. SHP can be used to pay transaction fees (on the services layer) and also act as currency to enable payments between other participants in the platform. SHP tokens can be used by the buyers and sellers to transact on the Synthium Health platform using a smart-contract based system. The value of the token will increase as adoption increases. For example, international payments for medical supplies is slow and time consuming and SHP token can help with that. Manufacturers have a volume based pricing negotiations/rewards. SHP tokens and smart contracts will be a huge benefit in distributing rewards in a semi-automated fashion. Eventually, we may be able to offer direct-to-home delivery of certain medical supplies/drugs and it would further enhance the value and versatility of the SHP tokens.
7) What are the steps for investing in SHP Token?
The process is fairly simple. You register an account on our wallet: https://wallet.synthiumhealth.com. Upon verification, you go to “BUY SHP”, select payment method and follow instructions from there. We are currently offering 25% bonus tokens with purchase.
8) Would you like to share the exchanges where SHP Token will be traded?
We have contacted few trading exchanges and are in the process, however, no agreement is reached as of now. The idea is to list after the end of the token sale but we will announce as soon as an agreement an reached.
9) What were some of the biggest challenges you encountered while working to launch your ICO?
Our wallet gave us lot of trouble and holiday season did not help.
10) Where do you see Synthium Health after ICO and in the next 5 years?
After the ICO, we will pursue our objectives to aspire to continue to lead in the healthcare supplies space. We hope to address some of the inefficiencies that are plaguing the industry.
Healthcare experts accept that nearly one third (1/3) of the cost in healthcare stem from inefficiencies. Lack of transparency, opaqueness of vision into businesses on both sides has made it stubbornly difficult to get industry players to work collaboratively, with each other; and as a result, achieving much needed goals towards Value-Based Care (VBC) is harmed.
We see this as a tremendous opportunity. Healthcare supplies being the second largest expense, after labor cost and it is expected to surpass it shortly, we plan to address these challenges and bridge the gaps between consumers, manufacturers and patents. Eventually, we want to bring some of the advances (custom medicine, 3D printing, etc) in medicine delivered directly to patients under the guidance of the clinicians.
11) What are your marketing and sales strategies to achieve that?
Healthcare is a high touch environment and we need to recruit people who understand that. We reached out to several healthcare enterprises (manufacturers and providers) and we have about 409 members signed up with us. We plan to onboard them after the token sale. We plan to use both onsite and offsite methods to reach our prospective customers. We plan to attend trade shows and other industry events to reach out to prospects.
12) Could you tell us a little about your team and customer support?
We are a global team supported by industry experts (in the advisory role). Again, thanks to technology, we are able to work closely despite geographic barriers. The team is very hardworking and accessible. Our customer support is also knowledgeable and very friendly. We also rely on consultants who have specialized knowledge from time to time.
13) Would you like to talk about your legal and security measures?
Currently, the platform is for members only. Security is our top priority and we implemented very high security standards for access to the platform. We restrict access to known IP addresses only (or VPN). We also deliver the application on HTTPS only. Additionally, we also run periodic vulnerability assessments. In our view, security is an ongoing affair and never a one time thing.
14) Do you have more information for our readers?
Please visit our website https://tge.synthiumhealth.com where we have product tours, pitch deck, whitepaper and more. Like every industry, healthcare is dynamic. We refine our plans and strategies based on what our customers want and expect. We always welcome suggestions/comments and encourage subscriptions to our newsletters in order to stay updated with our progress. Also, all healthcare, AI or blockchain enthusiasts are welcome to join the LinkedIn discussion group. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12077039 We always have room for more.
For more information, please see the Whitepaper here