Acumen, a non-profit global venture firm, is investing Rs 4.3 crore in Asian Health Alliance (AHA) which owns and operates low-cost medical diagnostic facilities in semi-urban and rural areas across Karnataka under its brand Asian Health Meter (AHM).
“There is a massive unmet need in how we diagnose medical conditions in our country, especially for the urban and semi-urban poor. The AHM model has the potential to significantly change that by offering services that save time, money and in some cases, lives,†said Sachin Rudra, India country director, Acumen.
AHM provides diagnostic service in communities where 80 per cent of the population earns less than Rs 15,000 a month family income.
According to the company, with access to these services, the total cost of treating patients will reduce if conditions are detected and diagnosed earlier and accurately.
“We are focused on providing quality, accessible and affordable medical diagnostics to communities where there currently are none,†said Tara Mohapatra, founder and CEO of Asian Health Alliance.
AHA will use Acumen’s investment to expand its radiology and pathology services in the region using a hub and spoke model. The company is planning to run 30 centres by 2016 and conduct nearly three million tests by 2020.
Since 2001, Acumen has invested more than $89 million in 81 companies across South Asia and Africa, of which $30 million has been invested in India.
In India, the fund focuses on segments like agriculture, housing, health, water and energy. In an earlier interaction with VCCircle, the fund, which has been bullish on secondary care single specialty companies, said it would also look at primary healthcare, diagnostic and medical technology companies. Its portfolio companies in healthcare segment includes LifeSpring Healthcare, Kerala First Health Services and Pushpagiri Health Care Hospitals.
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(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)