Groceries can be delivered in 10 minutes in any major city in India but ambulances may take over 40 minutes to arrive at a patient’s home. This challenge stems from the fact that more often than not, hospitals regulate the network of ambulances despite it not being their core service. Realising that the ambulance system needs to operate independently, Prabhdeep Singh founded a pan-India emergency response service modelled on the lines of the 911 Emergency helpline service in the US.
Red.Health, which initially started its services under the brand name StanPlus, answers an emergency call within two seconds and dispatches an ambulance with trained paramedics within 60 seconds. Currently, its services are available across 550+ cities including Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Chennai, Kolkata, Raipur, Indore, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kanpur, Kochi and Ahmedabad, amongst others. It now plans to expand to another 200 cities in FY23, especially focusing on getting a foothold in high altitude terrains like Jammu, Dharamshala, etc.
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“Our team uses GIS to connect to the closest ambulance to the patient, reducing the estimated time of arrival by 60% and turnaround time by 90%. The objective is to reduce the number of casualties and enable patients to receive adequate treatment within the ‘Golden Hour’, a crucial 60-minute period following a traumatic injury where prompt medical intervention can greatly enhance survival ratesw,” says Singh, founder and CEO, Red.Health.
The cost of the service typically ranges within a few thousands of rupees for within city transfers, based on the distance and the kind of ambulance required, claims the company.
The startup uses RED-OS, an operating system that utilises intelligent mapping and identification to quickly allocate emergency cases to the nearest ambulances equipped with the correct set of medical staff. “One of the key features of our system is real-time tracking through smart triage and transportation technology. With the help of advanced data processing and AI, we are able to complete each case in less than 8 minutes, providing faster care for those in need. At the core of our system is a driver app that we have developed as a front-end feature to use by the staff on-boarding and running the ambulances. This app is an essential link in the entire value chain and allows for seamless coordination and communication between dispatchers and ambulance staff,” he explains.
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In 2022, the company raised $20 million in Series A funding round led by marquee investors including HealthQuad, Kalaari Capital and HealthX Capital Singapore amongst others.
Currently, Red.Health has more than 5000 ambulances and 1500-plus trained professionals which include trained paramedics, doctors available for consultation, and drivers. It operates three call centres in Delhi, Hyderabad and Bhubaneshwar, having a combined strength of 100+ people actively serving people in emergency. The ground operations team is the largest with 1200+ people. Over the years, it has partnered with 300+ leading hospitals across India including Fortis, Apollo, Sakra, CARE Hospitals, KIMS Sunshine, AIG, Narayana Hrudayalaya, and QRG Marengo, to name a few.
Red.Health has now segmented its services into four verticals: Red Ambulances covering road ambulances, air ambulances (RED Air Guardian), bereavement services (Asth), and standby ambulances for corporates; Red Priority Clinics in rural areas providing integrated facilities for consultation, diagnosis, and medicine delivery; Red Academy for emergency response training for the ‘Golden Hour’ with the aim to integrate trained paramedics into the healthcare infrastructure; and Red Assist which offers Centralised Ambulance Management and Outsourcing (CAMO) services for hospital partners and doctor-on-call online consultation services for corporate partners.
