Alma Health, the future of digital healthcare

22 Apr, 2021

We caught up with Khaldoon Bushnaq, co-founder of Alma Health a healthcare company on a mission to transform the lives of millions of patients with chronic illnesses. Khaldoon talks about his experience setting up in Abu Dhabi’s Hub71, while shedding light on the future of HealthTech.

What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?

The genesis of Alma Health started as a simple but profound healthcare experience I had when suffering from severe back pain for several months: from seeing a doctor, getting a prescription, locating and purchasing it – the experience was discouraging and exhausting. I did some research and spoke to the people around me and learned that it is the chronically ill that suffer in this system the most and on a regular basis. This moved me and catalyzed my journey with Alma Health.

Underpinning this journey, I have been privileged enough to be surrounded and encouraged by extraordinary people. Family members, colleagues, and friends have all taught me life lessons about the importance of caring for our community and the most vulnerable and being unafraid to scale mountains when we are driven by purpose and conviction.

How did you find your way to Hub71, what attracted you to Abu Dhabi?

Abu Dhabi is a healthcare hub for the region, driven by public and private investments into clinics, hospitals, and treatment centers. I knew I wanted to launch Alma Health in a market that would be supportive to innovation and new technology. This prompted Alma Health’s acceptance into the Abu Dhabi Department of Health’s technology hub in Hub71. With the support of DOH, I was exposed to the Hub71 community.

Since that time, I have been continuously impressed with the calibre of the Hub71 team and programming, and the support provided to the startup community. Today we are proud members of the Hub71 program and I believe Abu Dhabi and Hub71 is everything an entrepreneur needs, to start a company and scale globally.

In your opinion, what trends are driving the HealthTech sector currently?

Patient experience is everything. If we look at our region today, millions of people live with chronic conditions. These patients are completely reliant on a healthcare system that has not meaningfully changed for a century.

At Alma Health we are focusing on an end-to-end digital experience for our patients. This means they can speak to a doctor, manage their medications, receive ongoing care, and receive life-saving medications from the comfort of their home at no extra cost.

From a technology perspective, this end-to-end engagement is a rich source of data and insights that I believe will lead to the creation of next generation healthcare products and services for chronic illness patients and the healthcare system as a whole.

How do you see the future of HealthTech in a post-COVID-19 world?

COVID-19 accelerated digital health trends of the past several years. In a post-COVID world, the role of regulation in ensuring health technology continues to evolve and scale will be paramount. We are now looking at a future in which 80 per cent of healthcare services will shift to a digital-first or at home experience than in a doctor’s office or pharmacy.

At Alma Health, we are making this future a reality today.

What are your future plans for Alma Health?

Alma Health is a comprehensive digital ecosystem dedicated to improving chronic healthcare management for people across the world.

While our platform offers day to day healthcare management of chronic conditions, its true value lies in its ability to improve health outcomes for our community members through personalized digital-first treatments and at home monitoring systems that support their healthcare journeys.

Alma Health is currently available in Abu Dhabi and is fully licensed by the Emirate’s Department of Health. It is part of major health insurance networks as well. Our platform will continue to expand to service other parts of the world in the near future. 

To find out more about Alma Health, follow us on Instagram.

 

To join the Hub71 community and benefit from its Incentive Program which includes equity-free subsidized housing, WeWork x Hub71 office space and health insurance, click here for more information.