It is a partnership that took root in the virtual world to deliver real benefits. They met online, exchanged emails and chats for over six months and then started a venture on a subject they considered close to their hearts.

This is how NephroPlus, a specialty centre for affordable kidney dialysis, was born in 2010. Vikram Vuppala, an IIT-Kharagpur graduate who worked as a healthcare consultant in the US for over a decade, returned to India to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams in the healthcare sector after he met Kamal Shah on the Internet. Shah, who has been undergoing seven-hour-long dialysis treatments every day for the last 15 years, blogged about his experiences, (www.kamaldshah.com), where Vuppala found him. Shah, a software professional, ran a venture to develop applications for iPhones and other mobile gadgets.

The duo, who soon became good friends, began to chalk out plans for making dialysis affordable and painless for patients. Vuppala met their soon-to-be third partner Sandeep Gudibanda at a workshop at Hyderabad’s Indian School of Business. Once the team was ready, the trio started their first dialysis centre at a bungalow in Hyderabad’s Banjara Hills locality.

Not only did they want to make dialysis affordable for patients, they wanted the treatment to be less frustrating, more hygienic and infection-free. Patients undergoing dialysis run a fairly high risk of HIV and hepatitis C infections if the procedure is not followed carefully.

“At NephroPlus, we have not had a single case of cross infection so far as we have checks at all points from where the infection can spread,” said Shah, adding that the three have introduced the ‘Zipkit’ that helps control infection.

“This is our IP (intellectual property) and we have shared this with several other centres, but most hospital chains don’t have the attitude or the passion for the treatment,” said Shah.So how do the three manage their roles? “Coming from different backgrounds, we’ve had our differences in opinion. But this is good for our business as all of us approach problems differently,” said Gudibanda, adding that the three have clearly split profiles. While Vuppala deals with finance, Sandeep takes care of marketing and business development. Shah is involved in the clinical aspects of business, from taking care of patients to the purchase of medical equipment, which they import from Germany.

The team started off with Rs 2.5 crore from angel investors and at present offers services to about 300 patients a day at 15 centres. With just five units, the cost for a dialysis begins at Rs 1,580. They aim to bring this down to Rs 800 a session for at least 10,000 patients each day soon.

Bessemer Venture Partners backed the firm’s plans to set up 100 more centres in the next three years in tier-3 cities such as Rohtak and Rajahmundry. Most of these will adopt the shop-in-shop format, that is, NephroPlus dialysis centres within large hospitals. “We plan to have 30 centres by the end of this year,” Vuppala said.

The promoters declined to share financial details, but, according to Vuppala, the firm is tripling its revenues year on year. They plan on a second round funding for up to $15-20 million in the next six months. “We are looking at both international and domestic private equity players,” Vuppala said, adding that the funds raised will be used for expanding their chain. They hope to significantly improve dialysis care in India, as about two lakh succumb to renal failure annually in the country.

priyanka.pani@thehindu.co.in

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