If the healthcare system is not functioning properly, the citizens have to suffer the consequences, and it is true for any country in the world. Hence, Bangladesh is not different either. Fortunately, Bangladesh is heading towards digitization. In this wake, many digital healthcare startups have been showing prospects. Over the last decade, some online healthcare startups have boomed with the aim of providing improved healthcare service, with better access to healthcare. We have compiled a list of top digital healthcare startups in Bangladesh. Let’s get to know them.
Best digital healthcare startups in Bangladesh
Maya
Maya was founded by Ivy Huq Russell in 2011 as a content-based platform focusing on women’s health care. But over the past years, it has been redesigned as a health care platform to offer anonymous messaging services about physical, psychological, and mental health questions. Maya Expert, an in-house built AI, answers about 30% of the incoming question with an accuracy rate of 90%.
Maya has their own app on Google Play, and so far, the Maya bot has served around 7.5 million people. They also offer B2B premium service where companies can take care of their employees’ mental healthcare. However, Maya has introduced premium services that included video consultation and medicine delivery. Moreover, the company has a Maya Shop that sells lifestyle and healthcare-related products.
Jeeon
Jeeon is a social business registered in the US and based in Bangladesh. Jeeon has been working in Bangladesh since 2015. Jeeon’s mission is to improve the health care of rural people in Bangladesh. And with that goal, they work with village doctors and pharmacists.
Jeeon creates supply systems for quality medicines and other health products and prevents counterfeiting. Furthermore, they work on increasing skills and competencies by providing various training to village doctors and pharmacists. Besides these, they also introduce and support new business ideas and new technologies in healthcare to the rural people. To highlight the important role of village doctors and pharmacists in the health sector of Bangladesh, Jeeon tries to contact the policymakers.
Now Jeeon has 4330 pharmacies in their network in different locations of the country, including Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Jessore, and other places.
Moner Bondhu
In 2016, Moner Bondhu started its journey with a unique idea. It aims to offer professional counseling at an affordable and accessible cost online. Currently, Moner Bondhu has engagement in three sectors. Firstly, they provide care and support to mentally disturbed people through its helpline – both online and offline.
Secondly, they organize different training sessions, workshops on stress management and create awareness on mental healthcare. Thirdly, Moner Bondhu endorses mental healthcare issues through a weekly radio program on Color’s FM 101.6.
According to the organization, they have reached 20,00,000 people so far online and 1,10,000 people through in-person and offline events. Moreover, Moner Bondhu has been working with the RMG sector in partnership with the UNDP to counter the mental health adversities of the RMG workers.
BanglaMeds
Founded in 2017 by Gazi Raffan, BanglaMeds is one of the first online pharmacies in Bangladesh. They offer OTC drugs and prescription medicines delivery around the country. BanglaMeds aims to provide medicine delivery within one to three hours after the confirmation of the order. However, sometimes the delivery time may take two days depending on the customer’s location.
The medicine ordering process is simple. You can take a picture or scan your prescription and upload it. Then the pharmacist will contact you to select the meds you want and for the verification. After that, you can get the medicines at your doorsteps. However, you will need to show the prescriptions to receive the delivery.
Apart from medicines, you can order accessories, diabetic kits, baby and mother care products, hygiene products, and more. The order can be done via various methods such as apps, websites, or even the social media platform.
CMED
Started in 2017, CMED is an AI-driven cloud base healthcare service provider. Dr. Khondaker Abdullah Al Mamun designed the CMED system that can monitor the vital organs of a human body.
CMED app is available on smartphones or tablets via Bluetooth. It can measure some important health vitalities such as oxygen saturation, blood pressure, blood sugar, pulse rate, height, weight, body mass index, and temperature. Based on these data, the app can provide instant feedback and also notify if there is a health risk.
They offer a health kit that comes with a digital height scale, weight scale, a blood glucose monitor, blood oxygen monitor, blood pressure monitors, and a thermometer. Further, the kit can be connected with the CMED app. So, you can complete the primary health checkup at home without visiting any doctor. Currently, they have more than 3314K+ registered users.
Olwel
Olwel is a Finland-based startup founded in 2017. They mainly offer doctor consultation services via online video calls, medicine delivery, lab testing, and ambulance service. Currently, Olwel operates in Dhaka city only. However, initially, the service was started with the access of 16 doctors of different specialties. They cover Dhanmondi and Mohammadpur area only.
The goal of Olwel is to connect the patients with nearby doctors through a website, app, or hotline. The service charge for an online video consultation service is Tk. 600. You will get 30 minutes time, and the doctor will give you the consultation based on your history within those 30 minutes. You will find the consultant’s name and specialty in the app or website. The company has a goal to set up 10 centers all over Dhaka city and provide the home service within 30 minutes of the call.
Pulse
Pulse is another video consultancy service that works via virtual appointments, chambers, and e-prescription. They help the patients to have primary consultation from a doctor and then follow up through their web platform. Pulse started their operation in 2017 in the Barisal division. This digital healthcare startup aims to expand its service area soon.
Pulse provides their service via encrypted video call so that your information remains safe with the doctor. It works through a membership plan. Anyone can get a membership for Tk. 499 and get access to the 24/7 call center and consult with more than 1,000 doctors.
AmarLab
“Diagnostics At Your Doorstep” is the tagline of AmarLab. Started in 2017, this healthcare startup offers at-home diagnostic test service as well as online doctor consultation. AmarLab provides its service via 14 premium lab partners, including Ibn Sina Hospital, Popular Diagnostic Center, Praava Health, United Hospital, and more.
Furthermore, the telemedicine service of AmarLab offers 2500 registered doctors and about 70 of them use AmarLab’s virtual chamber platform where patients can make an appointment and consult the doctors.
DoctorKoi
DoctorKoi was founded in 2017 with the aim to provide online consultation services and ease the doctors’ prescription writing via software. They work with more than 1300 doctors and have a partnership with top pharmaceutical companies. So far, DoctorKoi has processed more than 2.6 million digital prescriptions.
As per the company, they have provided more than 12,000 online consultancy services to patients. Moreover, the prescription writing software allows doctors to write applications within a few clicks. Doctors can add medicines in prescription from 27000+ listed medicines from the database.
Praava Health
Founded by Sylvana Quadir Sinha in 2018, Praavaa Health has developed a strong telemedicine network within just 2 years and is currently connecting the health centers with physical clinics. It integrates the digital health and in-clinic experience as well as virtual consultation service. The company manages the medical records of the patients that can be easily accessed through Praava mobile app.
Over the span of two years, Praava Health has established 40 collection points for lab tests and six labs throughout Dhaka city. It also built Bangladesh’s first molecular cancer diagnostic lab.
Praava has more than 50 doctors who offer services to more than 150,000 patients. They also helped the healthcare system during the Covid-19 pandemic. Praava Health has been growing exponentially, covering more patients.
Arogga
It is an online pharmacy started in 2020 with an aim to control counterfeit medicines in Bangladesh. This Bangladesh-based digital healthcare startup aims to supply a wide range of original medicines to the end-users at a reasonable price.
Currently, the pharmacy offers OTC medicines that also include diet/fitness supplements, vitamins, mother & feminine products, and sexual healthcare products. In a span of one year, the company has achieved more than 70,000 app downloads and delivered 30,000 drugs so far. Arogga is yet to grow and more services will be launched soon.
Daktar Bondhu
Daktar Bondu started its operation in October 2020. This startup offers a video consultation service. They have more than 60 doctors from 20+ departments in their network. The consultation fee is affordable. Besides these, the company also offers delivery of authentic healthcare products and medicines within 24 hours inside Dhaka city.
Daktar Bondu has covered more than 3000 doctor consultations as well as medicine orders in the last year. The company is still growing, and they have secured pre-seed funding from SBK Tech Ventures this year.
