- Understanding consumer knowledge, attitude, behaviour and healthcare practices in low resource settings
- Helping clients in developing innovative product concepts for rural healthcare delivery
- Marketing and distribution strategy for healthcare services and products in rural areas
Our Differentiators
- We specialize in consumer health need assessment for new product concept idea generation, design
and development in emerging markets - We develop sustainable business models for health service delivery in low income markets using
social infrastructure
Consumer Centric Product Development
Case I
Challenge/Problem: A global healthcare company with expertise in sensors and imaging technology wanted to scope its application in health arena in the low income markets of India.
- To study the environment for various health care diagnostics for service providers, individuals or institutions
- There existed environment challenges for service providers – they did not possess basic diagnostic tools for measuring blood pressure, body temperature or sugar levels; doctors were located >25 kms away
- A felt need for developing a monitoring device that does not need technical capability of health care providers.
Our Approach: MART conducted an Ethnography research with shadowing of health service providers. Design research, concept development and testing approaches were used to explore technological applications
Results/Solution
- Developed specification for a sensor based prototype to detect changing chemical composition in body perspiration in case of major health problem which is indicated through color changing beads
Case II
Challenge/Problem: One of the largest software companies in the world recognizes that its work in the healthcare industry is not about solving technology problems; instead it is about solving people problems. This challenge inspired the company to develop a product that can address the health issues in rural, for which it wanted to understand the major healthcare issues.
- To understand rural health environment and technology
- The challenge was that grass root health workers manage multiple health programs which require data management. It is also prone to data loss and data manipulation
Our Approach: MART conducted an ethnography research to understand:
- Health problems and access to health services
- Cultural and social barriers to access health services …. Pain points …. Felt need
- Perceptions towards technology based solutions ….. Enabler … Neutrality …. Applicability …..Belief
Results/Solution: MART helped the company develop prototypes of low cost data management devices for the government frontline health workers
Designing Business Models for Low Income Markets
Challenge/Problem
- To understand rural economy and healthcare systems and explore opportunities for technological intervention in Grameen Health program in Bangladesh
- Study feasibility of extending Grameen Kalyan program, a paid health service based on ICT to the newly targeted areas.
Our Approach
- MART used an ethnography research methodology to understand treatment behavior in different socio economic households and related to gender in the target villages.
- In-depth interview of financial service providers and health service providers were conducted ….. Institutional finance for healthcare …… technology adoption for efficient service delivery
Results/Solution: Grameen has launched a pilot program using ICT for health service delivery based on the feasibility report
Rural Health Communication
Challenge/Problem: An International Independent, nonprofit organization committed to solving critical social problems across the globe through education and social marketing wanted to develop right Communication for Diarrhea Management in India.
- To study the rural community and health service providers for attitude and practices towards diarrhea management among infants / children below 5 years
- To understand awareness and acceptance of zinc in diarrhea management
Our Approach: A comprehensive qualitative study was conducted across project districts of Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat
- Used Participatory Rural Appraisal to understand the access to healthcare for diarrhea among mothers of infants/children below 5 years
- Conducted focus group discussions with rural medical practitioners (RMPs) to understand their knowledge about stages of diarrhea infection and its management with zinc
- Conducted interviews with general practitioners (GPs) and specialists to understand the prevalence of delayed treatment for diarrhea and practice of prescribing zinc
Results/Solution
- Developed insights into beliefs and practices of mothers and their pain points.
- Identified information gaps among health service providers
- Designed communication cues to develop comprehensive communication strategy on diarrhea management
Biswadeep Palit: Market research in emerging markets, for him, is like an open door. Be it studying the rural institutions or the BoP consumer, he understands the environment. He has been innovative and has conducted several studies related to concept testing and product development in health domain in India, Bangladesh and similar countries. He has been an integral part of MART family since he joined in the year 2005. He leads the health sector of MART.
Smriti Singh: A skilled professional with over six years experience in the area of market research, analysis and marketing, Smriti has been a core team member of the health vertical of MART. She has been leading various projects ranging from health insurance to health equipment to pharmaceutical industry in this sector. Her expertise lies in understanding consumer usage and attitude, impact assessment, pricing analysis, product and concept testing in the low income markets.
| AED Bill Melinda Gates Foundation(BMGF) British Petroleum- Urja Dabur DSM GE Healthcare Hindustan Latex Honeywell |
Intel Grameen, Bangladesh Intel Technologies Johnson & Johnson Max Bupa Health Insurance Micronutrient Initiative N-MARC Program USAID(CRS),Nepal Novartis NSRL, University of Illinois,USA |
Path Finder International PATH International Population Services International(PSI) Plan India International Shell Foundation UNICEF |
