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Dr Mohan’s Diabetes Specialities Centre, a Chennai-based diabetes care provider, recently got funding from impact investor Lok Capital. From a modest start over the last two decades, Dr Mohan’s has built up a strong base of clinics in South India without leaving other regions untapped.
Aditya Sharma, Director, Lok Capital, says, “Diabetes is no longer an urban problem if you think of the sheer size of the problem across India. Dr Mohan’s is a unique asset.”
Gold in databaseDr Mohan’s had computerised database early on. The company says it has “one of the largest databases of diabetic patients in the world” and that it has four lakh diabetic patients registered with it. “I can see the details of all my patients across my centres. We’re able to provide continuity of care… we have access to records of over 20 years,” says V Mohan, Chairman.
Justifying the investment in Dr Mohan’s, Sharma says, “diabetes kills slowly. This can lull both patients and doctors into a sense of complacency. We liked how the disease was being handled from multiple points of approach by Mohan.
“His research is phenomenal and he has an excellent training programme for doctors.”
In a bid to beef up the ecosystem for diabetes care, Dr Mohan’s has so far trained over 10,000 physicians across India.
About half of those physicians reportedly had a postgraduate degree. The company continues to train dieticians, diabetes educators, diabetic foot specialists (Podiatry), and other professionals.
Eye on scaleAccording to Mohan, in the early 1970s, while he was still a medical student, there was little focus on endocrinology as a specialty.
He says his father first started a private diabetes care practice in north Chennai.
Later, over three generations (Mohan’s daughter and son-in-law help grow the business now) Dr Mohan’s managed a scale that Lok Capital found impressive.
“Initially, we grew the business with the help of bank loans. We looked at private equity options when we wanted to accelerate growth. Many private equity players have preferred investments in multi-specialty healthcare companies,” says Mohan of the change in tide Lok Capital’s investment in the company represents.
To its credit, Dr Mohan’s maintains diversity in its service and revenue models – it sells its own brand of food products, for example.
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