PharmaSecure, a leading patient data company, has joined the Business Call to Action (BCtA) to improve healthcare access for 200,000 people in India by 2015 through its specialty mobile phone application psConnect™.

As an extension of its medicine verification business model, the company developed psConnect™ to meet the gaps in healthcare access and high rates of counterfeit medicine. Through this application, consumers may register authentic medicines by sending an SMS of the unique code that is printed on the medicine pack at the time of manufacture.

After consumers register their medicine, they gain access to psConnect™, an SMS-based platform of mobile health services that educate consumers about their condition, remind them to follow proper treatment regimens, and make referrals to healthcare providers, among other services. Being SMS-based, psConnect™ is especially useful to patients in remote and underserved areas.

“PharmaSecure is transforming the delivery of healthcare services with its mobile health platform, which educates consumers in the use of mobile technology to gain greater control of their healthcare needs,” said Sahba Sobhani, Acting Programme Manager for the Business Call to Action.

The applications of psConnect™ go beyond just the Base of the Pyramid, especially in India, where chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease are on the rise. Reminders to take the necessary medicines at the right intervals not only help improve patients’ health, but recapture revenue lost by pharmaceutical companies due to poor adherence by patients.

This reclaiming of lost revenue in turn allows manufacturers to bear costs of other beneficial psConnect™ programs, including free physician consultations over the phone, which help prevent the self-diagnosing and self-medication that many patients do in India to avoid doctor fees.

“PharmaSecure has been working in India since 2007 and has verification codes on over 700 million pharmaceutical products,” said Nathan Sigworth, PharmaSecure’s Co-founder and Chief Executive. “As an innovative pharmaceutical verification provider, PharmaSecure is proud to partner with the Business Call to Action and expand this much needed low-cost mobile health platform.”

About the Business Call to Action (BCtA)
Business Call to Action is a global initiative that challenges companies to develop inclusive business models that offer the potential for development impact along with commercial success. The initiative is the result of a partnership between the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), UK Department for International Development (DFID), US Agency for International Development (USAID), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Global Compact, and the Clinton Global Initiative to meet the anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Companies report on progress toward commitments on an annual basis. www.businesscalltoaction.org | @BCtAInitiative

About PharmaSecure
PharmaSecure understands and improves healthcare outcomes by letting patients register authentic medicines via text-message. Our scalable technology has already printed 700 million unique identifiers on medicine packages in India and Nigeria. After patients register medicines, they can enroll in free telemedicine services, like text-message reminders to take your medicine, health tips, or telephonic doctor consultations. We also follow up with patients for behavior assessment and panel recruitment. Data is displayed with real time, interactive dashboards.

Business Call to Action (BCtA)

Business Call to Action (BCtA)

Business Call to Action is a global joint advocacy platform that works to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by challenging and supporting companies to develop inclusive business models that offer the potential for both commercial success and development impact. It is hosted by the United Nations Development Programme and funded by Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, UK Department for International Development (DFID). To date, 230 companies from around the world have signed on to commit to contribute to the SDGs, from large multinational companies to national and small- and medium-enterprises in 70 countries.

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