IT is always easier to prevent something from happening than to repair the damage after it has happened.
Dr David Khoo Sin Keat, a heart surgeon and doctorpreneur, had always wanted to help people live longer and lead better lives.
He has been the founder and group managing director of iHEAL Health Sdn Bhd, and also the medical director and consultant cardiothoracic surgeon of IHEAL Medical Centre since June 2010.
"Coronary heart disease is currently the leading killer in Malaysia with an average of 45 people dying from heart attacks and heart related issues everyday," said Dr Khoo.
He is keen to revolutionalise the healthcare industry, which was touted as being traditionally slow and he plans to disrupt it with digital transformation, as he does not believe in the "car workshop model" where patients seek medical consultation only when they are ill. After all, prevention is better than cure.
In 1989, Dr Khoo graduated from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and was awarded the University Gold Medal.
A fellow of The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh since 1993. Dr Khoo underwent training in Cardiothoracic Surgery at Institut Jantung Negara (IJN).
He also did a fellowship in advanced cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at the Mayo Clinic, USA in 1996.
Upon completion of the training, he took the role of consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at IJN and subsequently at Ipoh Specialist Hospital, Subang Jaya Medical Centre, Gleneagles Hospital and Prince Court Medical Centre before he finally founded iHEAL Health and its flagship medical centre, iHEAL Medical Centre in 2010.
Today, at age 59, he prefers to operate less-invasively on patients without stopping their hearts, has plans to expand his business model which integrates preventive care, healthcare maintenance and healthcare treatment to Dili inTimor Leste, and eventually in other cities in Southeast Asia.
"I also have plans to explore this in Europe, Middle East and Africa after we've penetrated the Asean countries," he said.
"It is important to get government support from the countries I plan to venture into. The business model adopts the 3E concept which is to Engage the people, Ease the process of diagnosis and care, and finally to Empower the people.
"Normally, people will attend talks and for the first few days they would be very interested about the topic of health. But, after that, they would forget all about it. So what we're doing now is to engage the people at the workplace where they spend much of their time via "Wellbeing@Workplace" also known as the W@W app which is aimed to enhance the wellbeing of human capital, reduce company healthcare costs and improving employee productivity," he said.
Dr Khoo, who is also a certified trainer accredited by the Human Resource Development Corporation, said a Health Pod will be placed at the company that signed up with iGLOW, a sister company of iHEAL.
A team of medical professionals will then visit the company every three or six months with dedicated programs to improve the overall health of the population.
Another signature product is the iGLOW 10 Point Check which is designed for the public to assess risks and early signs of stroke and cardiovascular disease in a non-invasive manner, and at a more affordable price point.
Meanwhile, another company under iHEAL Group, offers a programme called OurCheckup where the patient is paired with a doctor.
If the patient were to be in the United States for a holiday and he feels unwell, he can reach a doctor via an online platform called PocketDoc and consult the doctor via a video call.
The doctor will ask a few questions, and make an assessment as he collects the patient's health information using a portable medical device which allows the measurement of key vitals even if the patient is miles away.
"If it is serious, the doctor will refer the patient to an affiliated medical facility in the US," he said.
"We worked with doctors, local programmers and tech experts to design the app and we are in the midst of launching it regionally," he said, adding that the concept of PocketDoc is the "doctor travels with you".
His advice to youths is "don't take from society more than you can give back, while you aspire to be the best you can be."
Dr Khoo, a former student of Penang Free School, is the father of three children. One of his daughters is a lawyer and the other a doctor, while his son is a mechanical and software engineer.
*The writer was a journalist with the New Straits Times before joining a Fortune Global 500 real estate company. This article is a collaboration between the New Straits Times and Tradeview, the author of 'Once Upon A Time In Bursa'.