“We care for those who cared for us ” keeps us moving “Kuhu Adhikary
When we talk about healthcare, we cannot avoid talking about senior and elderly citizen care in the healthcare space as they are most vulnerable and require more care and support be it at home from immediate family members or professional health care.
Now situations are changing and there are many participants in healthcare specializing in senior citizen’s care, when India is witnessing exponential growth in the number and proportion of elderly people, coupled with a decreasing fertility rate (less than 2.0) and increasing life expectancy (more than 70 years).
As per the National Health Profile, in 2017, there were only 43 physicians per 100,000 population in rural areas, compared to 118 physicians per 100,000 population in urban areas.
One such organization is Silver Genie whose Founder is Poulomi Bhattacharya, was born right in the middle of Covid, at the beginning of the second wave. . Their idea was put to the acid test when the most vulnerable segment facing pandemic were seniors.
Founder Labs spoke to Kuhu Adhikary, the National Operation Head for Silver Genie, who has over 29 years of professional experience. Silver Genie has evolved as Full Stack, broad spectrum Platform for Senior and elderly citizen Care Solutions
Kuhu is a well-known name in corporate world and in previous roles she worked as GIS Analyst, Software Developer, Program Manager, Quality Consultant, Audit Head, Business Risk Management Head, and Information Security Assurance Head.
Inception of Silver Genie & Growth
About 30 months later, Silver Genie has evolved as a full stack, broad spectrum senior care solutions company that has empowered over 1000 seniors, many of whom stay away from their children.
Silver Genie plays in the following niche area
- Direct Care of Seniors from curative to rehabilitative to emergency care with trained concierges.
- Home caregiving and matching of caregivers with care seekers.
- Holistic management of two most common Non communicable diseases Diabetes and Hypertension through IOT devices.
- Learning and Development platform for training and accreditation of Allied Health Care workers.
Today Silver Genie have Patrons in 10+ countries with a community of 10000 seniors and this also includes job creation 500+ caregivers, 80% of who are women.
The company saved 20 lives through their technology enabled emergency management process.
As per Kuhu there is a Demographic shift is a defining problem that India will have to face in the next 10-15 years.
Silver Genie will provide some of the answers at scale to tide over the challenge that we and many other similar countries will face. In addition, the company drives great social impact through women empowerment, financial inclusion and equitable health delivery through personalized care.
The journey of Silver Genie began through referrals within their common network. However, in 2024, the company took the next step in our growth by embracing digital marketing alongside our organic referral-based lead generation.
Initially incubated at STPI, we started with a small team in Kolkata and Delhi says Kuhu. Today, Silver Genie have expanded our operations in these cities and recently opened our newest site in Bangalore.
‘Our roadmap includes establishing these as our base locations and further expanding across the North, East, and South of India’ elaborate Kuhu with glittering hope in her eyes.
On Challenges towards creation of Silver Genie
Silver Genie was built out of three pillars: Customers, Vendors, and Culture as per Kuhu. Business and risk are two sides of the same coin. The immediate challenge was to find skilled resource pool of reputed physicians, dieticians, counsellors etc for the organization.
The company’s leadership team focused on collaboration and coordination to effectively meet challenges as a result we succeeded over a period of time.
Along with trials and tribulations the team often celebrates every milestone achieved with equal zeal. The drive and motivation to achieve that mission “We care for those who cared for us ” keeps us moving.
In this way Silver Genie has created a name for itself and has emerged as a force to be reckoned with in the senior care segment.
Silver Genie was incubated by STPI and have been part of Google Accelerator Program and Wadhwani Foundation. Now the organization is a part of UN Women.
Market opportunities & Growth plan
The total addressable market (TAM) for senior citizen population is 150 million and it is projected to increase by 15% till 2036. This is our TAM says Kuhu. If we assume 30% of the parents of NRI children’s staying abroad or metros, then our market opportunity is 4.5 million SAM (system for award management). Our obtainable market stands to 45000 which is 1% of total market.
Managing the healthcare requirements of senior citizen and providing comprehensive, seamless healthcare platform for senior citizens with an array of services and expertize is the prime aim of Silver Genie. In this way elders can access everything they need to manage their health better.
Advice for New age business owners:
Be resilient and persistent in your efforts says Kuhu with zeal. Resilient Startups are flexible and agile, able to adjust their strategies, products, and processes according to the feedback and data they receive. They are not afraid to pivot, experiment, or iterate, as they see change as an opportunity to learn and improve. If persistent then the road is easier to travel.
