Portea acquires majority stake in IIT-Mumbai-alumni startup PSTakeCare

Home healthcare platform Portea Medical today announced that it has taken a majority stake in healthtech startup PSTakeCare, which connects stakeholders in the healthcare delivery ecosystem. PSTakecare, with the help of comprehensive information, analytics and consumer feedback, places the decision-making power in the patients' hands.

In September 2015, Portea received Series B funding of $37.5 million from Accel, IFC, Qualcomm Ventures and Ventureast. The investment in PSTakeCare follows Portea’s acquisition of speciality pharmaceutical distributor MedybizPharma, in November 2015.

With this stake, Portea aims to provide its customers with the ability to make choices for themselves. More details on the investment and stake haven't been disclosed. Meena Ganesh, MD and CEO, Portea, says that consumers globally are accelerating adoption of technology for healthcare solutions.

PSTakeCare, she says, places the patient at the centre of the healthcare universe, and this focus on the patient is a common goal her company shares as well. Better information enables transparency in the healthcare ecosystem across the board.

Pratik Chinchole, Co-Founder and CEO, PSTakeCare, says that there is a stronger need for transparency in the healthcare ecosystem. He adds that the team would like to become the first port-of-call for patients seeking information on doctors, hospitals and labs for any medical procedure.

The PSTakeCare solution is available to patients in a few areas in Mumbai, and will launch in other metros during the course of this year.

As Portea is expanding its offerings to tackle the challenges of India’s rising ageing population and non-communicable diseases, it is exploring other investments and expansions.

Last year, Portea claims to have seen revenue grow by about 200 per cent, the number of home visits increase by 151 per cent, the number of active patients rise by 91 per cent, its patient database expand by 307 per cent, and its clinicians base grow by 255 per cent to 2,300.

YourStory take

Home healthcare is fast picking up along with other segments of the healthtech space. Portea, along with competitors like India Home Healthcare, Unique Home Care by Apollo, Healers and Home and Nightingale’s, can create and capture a large market if they get their patient-care model right while scaling up.

With its acquisitions and further investments the team is planning, it is safe to assume that Portea is looking at a whole gamut of healthtech and healthcare opportunities, apart from just the patient home-care model.

Also, the time for healthtech seems to be pretty bright, with 2015 clocking 57 deals and $277 million in funding. Preventive medicine is clearly a sector likely to see a lot more activity in 2016.