I recently spoke to Dr. Samant Virk, Founder & CEO of MediSprout, a company focused on connecting doctors with their patients through innovative technology solutions. Sam created MediSprout so that doctors can use an affordable technology to connect with their patients - the reason so many got into medicine in the first place - and in turn, help people live healthy lives. Having practiced clinical medicine for more than 15 years, with a specialization in Neurology and Interventional Spine, Sam is focusing on actualizing his vision of addressing the shortcomings of healthcare by enhancing one of the cornerstones of medical practice, the provider-patient interaction. MediSprout has been named as a TEDMED Hive company, which recognizes cutting-edge innovations that change the status quo across health and medicine.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. ​How did you get here? ​What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth? 

Sam: Thank you so much for the opportunity to have this discussion. Having practiced clinical medicine for almost 15 years, with a specialization in Neurology and Interventional Spine, I watched over the years as the technology in our practices created barriers between myself and my patients, rather than opening the doors to access.  I knew that I was capable of providing so much more to my patients and was compelled to create positive change.

Unfortunately, more physician time is being spent filling out insurance paperwork, playing phone tag and chasing follow-ups — and less time treating people, helping families and serving communities. Time spent in physician-patient interactions, the core of any medical practice, is now being governed by insurance companies and complex billing and payment systems, federal and legal mandates, the pharmaceutical industry, and in dealing with technology that was intended to improve the business of care. I became a doctor to make a meaningful impact on my patients’ lives, to give them the personalized level of care they deserve, and to have a relationship with them that fosters their ongoing health and well-being. It’s almost impossible to do that right now. 

I saw an opportunity to make a difference in healthcare and wanted to take the lead by creating and leveraging technologies that safeguard personal interaction, and at the same time create better and more efficient options for patients to access care. To facilitate that, I founded MediSprout, a company that offers a HIPAA-compliant, virtual video product, V2MD, which is a secure, reliable way for practitioners to better connect with their existing patients to build relationships and provide ongoing care.

Adam: What health tech trends are on the horizon for 2020?

Sam:  It’s been an exciting time in recent years for the healthcare industry— we are in the midst of a digital transformation.  We’re really starting to see patients treated like customers and a greater focus on that customer service. While innovative technologies are transforming the delivery of care and improving outcomes, our healthcare system, by many accounts, ranks one of the worst among high-income nations. Clearly we have work to do and many opportunities for growth, which I believe will take shape this year.  

I think this year will bring an even greater focus on the human element of healthcare because we’re starting to realize even more the importance of the doctor and patient relationship.  The more connected patients feel with their providers, the better care they can receive. It’s something I’m very passionate about - getting back to real communication, and much of that can be done with technology advances that allow us to enhance care.  With close to 70 percent of physicians’ work being done outside of the exam room, many providers are often spending most of their time handling documentation required by EMRs and taking care of administrative tasks, such as playing phone tag and chasing follow-ups. Instead of real communication, doctors are spending much of their time with their eyes turned to computer screens, electronically recording conversations.

In 2020, rather than requiring patients to schedule in-office appointments for routine needs, such as prescriptions and lab results, more providers will offer virtual solutions. It’s equally as important when patients suspect an illness like the flu - they’re home feeling run down and the last thing they’re interested in doing is making a trip to the doctor’s office.  Take a look at where we are today. We’re trying to stay ahead of a rapidly growing virus that has already affected way too many people - the coronavirus. Hospitals and doctor’s offices around the country are urging patients to stay home if they suspect the flu, and to schedule a televisit instead. Not only does this help the patient by eliminating the trip when they don’t feel well, but it keeps the medical community, and others who might be waiting in a doctor’s office, free from possible infection.  This is a great example of technology at work in an effective way. Think about how many germs could be contained if we all provide the ability for our patients to connect with their physicians by video, in the comfort of their own homes.

I also see greater adoption of using apps for healthcare.  As patients take on greater responsibility for their healthcare and look for new channels of care, including mobile apps and at-home diagnostic testing, they will become more accustomed to connecting with their doctors this way and will rely more on being diagnosed at home before going to the doctor for treatment.  

Lastly, I think we’ll continue to see a greater focus on tools that leverage AI and predictive analytics to help providers evaluate vast amounts of data, uncover treatments with proven effectiveness, better predict what their patients need today, and help prevent complications and illnesses.

Providers will also rely more heavily on technology platforms, software, and mobile apps that allow them to more readily access clinical data, connect and collaborate with peers and patients, and better manage their practices. Eventually, advancements will extend their clinical capabilities, enabling them to look up drug interactions, monitor blood loss in surgical procedures, evaluate imaging, and make faster, more accurate diagnoses.

Adam: What are the 5, 10 and 20 year trends?

Sam: I believe the near term trends in the next five years will be for doctors and patients alike to get used to the idea that getting care virtually is not only possible but a good thing and, if with a provider who knows you, can be better healthcare. Once that acceptance begins for subjective use, I believe over the next 10-15 years we will see more device and data information utilized as part of virtual visits. As soon as the ability to remotely examine and assess patients occurs becomes more prevalent, I foresee nearly ¾ of all medical office visits becoming virtual.   

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? 

Sam: Years ago, I noticed that advances in technology were really beginning to make my life easier, especially with the mundane tasks we have to do in our days, like banking and grocery shopping.  With a phone app, I could transfer money, pay a bill, or order groceries to my house. But when I would go to work, the tools that were helping millions of people like me with routine things in our lives were nowhere to be found to help those of us in the medical community, or our patients to do the routine things we do every day in our practices.

I decided to change that and established my company and a videoconferencing system to conduct consultations and follow-up visits with existing patients rather than having them go through the trouble of the office visit. On average, a patient has a 35 minute drive with an additional 18 minutes of wait time to see their doctor. A virtual visit can take much less time, and be conducted with your own doctor, from a place that works for you and at a time that’s right for you. 

Adam: What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?

Sam:  As many fellow entrepreneurs know, the ideas for those startups often begin with having a problem that needs to be solved.  And those solutions don’t usually come when you’re walking the dog or watching TV with your family. When you’re working hard at something else, your brain might ignite and the idea is born.  That’s the mind of an innovator - we start brainstorming with problems that are close to us - many times that’s in our careers and we realize where there are opportunities for growth.

Building a new business is not easy and takes the type of grit and relentless determination that comes from your beliefs and your passion to make something bigger, better, more impactful.  It’s not always the actual idea that makes us entrepreneurs, but our willingness to dive deep, be vulnerable and possibly make mistakes along the way, but keep trying to make your vision come true.  This is important for individuals working on their “great” idea - remember that we can all have great ideas, but how we make them happen, how much we push forward with sheer determination - that’s what really matters.

Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?

Sam: I practiced clinical medicine for almost 15 years and there were many times when I felt frustrated with the healthcare system - run down, tired and not doing the job I was trained to do.  Like many doctors, I spent more time filling out insurance paperwork and playing phone tag than actually treating my patients and serving the community. Today’s healthcare system isn’t conducive for bringing patients and doctors together and so much of the technology that physicians rely on is outdated and complicated. I knew there was a better way to bring doctors and patients together and that’s why I started my business.  

Testing a business idea takes patience and a willingness to shift gears when necessary. It might not be the first idea that’s the one that works - it may take many iterations of that idea, and building upon it, and embracing failure because it offers a chance to course correct.  You might need to adjust your expectations along the way and keep testing.

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

Sam: It may sound cliche, but finding the best, most talented and knowledgeable people and trusting them to do what they do best.  Listen to your customers and create products and services that give them more of what they like and less of what they’re not interested in.  Getting really laser focused on the customer and what their needs are is paramount because at the end of the day, the customer’s needs are what drives our business.  And having a really stellar user experience is critical, so that the product just works the way it’s supposed to work every single time. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?   

Sam: I think the key is to stay incredibly focused on that target customer.  Understanding about who they are and what they care deeply about, what are their frustrations and how can you make their life easier.  It’s also important to understand how they buy -- is it in-person, online, are they on social media, are they at conferences and events -- all these things matter, too.  

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?    

Sam: I think true leaders want to make the world a better place and pursue business opportunities that help people lead better or easier lives.  They think about how they can disrupt the status quo, but also know that getting the right ideas, the ones that are successful, takes a village.  Effective leaders tap into the expertise of others around them and they’re willing to make mistakes and learn from them, to continue shaping their idea into something amazing.

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading and managing teams? 

Sam: Don’t get carried away with what’s happening at any particular moment or specific traits that a person may possess. The process from building through to managing must be guided by the mission of the company and remembering the purpose of having a team. I view a team as a group of individuals who are staked to a common purpose with willingness to sacrifice individual goals for the greater good of the organizational mission. Selecting team members and building a team goes beyond a person’s individual credentials or accomplishments or what’s on their resume. Once you have the right people like this around you, the processes of building, leading and managing should be guided by the mission of the company which comes through me and everyone else on the team. Taking a sports analogy - I’ve seen the most talented players turn a good team into a failure as well as seen teams take players of average talent who turn a teams into championship organizations. 

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders? 

Sam: -Show up and be present - your presence matters and when you are present, pay attention, be involved and interested. Make people feel like they matter.

-Be humble - it’s a great way to take down walls and makes you approachable, attracting honesty so you can keep your finger on the pulse of what’s really happening. Also - people are attracted to it.

-Turn adversity into an advantage - everyone has challenging times in life including our greatest leaders from Abraham Lincoln to Theodore Roosevelt and FDR, all of whom went through periods of deep, life altering depression. They battled through those times and turned those times of adversity into their greatest strengths to lead and make transformational decisions. 

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?    

Sam:  I think it’s more a life lesson quote that has really made an impact on me over the years and it’s from Steve Jobs.  He said, ‘Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.’ 

When I was in medical school, the amount of work and time you have to put in the first two years can cause lots of self-doubt. You are constantly surrounded by lots of smart people, many of whom love to talk about how much they know and are just generally hyper-competitive. While initially, this was very distracting and caused some amount of self-doubt, I quickly learned that the best way to succeed was to double-down on me. It took some courage but I stayed focused on what I knew would work best for me, avoided the distractions of others, made it my mission to help others when I could without being condescending and set my own goals and priorities which led to my being among the top of my class. It is a lesson that has been invaluable to me, particularly the way we live today inundated with news, information and social distraction that can prevent you from leading your own fulfilling life because you are focusing too much on others.