Month: June 2023

Cancer patients in India can now heave a sigh of relief, thanks to the availability of the cryoablation technology in the country. Cryoablation is a minimally invasive image guided (ultrasound or CT scan) treatment, that uses extreme cold to freeze and accurately destroy diseased tissue within the tumour zone.  This technology is the brainchild of an Israeli company, IceCure Medical. Its flagship product, ProSense freezes tumours quickly and with minimal pain. It uses liquid nitrogen (LN2) for maximum freezing, safety, and efficacy. NovoMed Incorporation Pvt Ltd is the authorized distributor of IceCure Medical in India.

During cryoablation, a thin, needle-like probe called a cryoprobe is inserted into the target area. The cryoprobe uses liquid nitrogen as a coolant, which rapidly cools the surrounding tissue. As the tissue freezes, ice crystals form, causing cellular damage and destruction. The extreme cold temperatures essentially freeze and kill the abnormal cells.

Cryoablation has several advantages over other treatment methods. It is considered a minimally invasive procedure, meaning it requires only a small incision or needle puncture, resulting in less trauma to the body and faster recovery times compared to open surgery. It can be performed under local anaesthesia, eliminating the need for general anaesthesia in many cases. Additionally, cryoablation is relatively precise, allowing for targeted treatment of the abnormal tissue while preserving surrounding healthy tissue. Hospital stay is not required in most cases.

The specific application of cryoablation depends on the condition being treated. It is commonly used in the treatment of benign and malignant tumours of various kinds including breast cancer, kidney cancer, liver cancer, lung cancer, bone, soft tissue, and other types of tumours.

Dr Ajit Yadav, Consultant, Interventional Radiologist, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, averred, “Cryoablation is a minimally invasive technique that uses extreme cold to destroy abnormal tissue, such as tumours or abnormal cells, by freezing them. It has gained popularity in recent years and has become an important tool in the arsenal of interventional radiologists for ablation of various tumours. One of the significant advantages of cryoablation is its ability to precisely target and destroy abnormal tissue while preserving surrounding healthy structures. This level of precision is particularly crucial when dealing with tumours located near vital structures, such as blood vessels, nerves, or organs. Cryoablation offers a non-surgical alternative for patients who may not be suitable for traditional surgery or who prefer a less invasive treatment option. Another benefit of cryoablation is its versatility. It can be used in various areas of the body, including the liver, kidney, lung, prostate, breast, and bone.

This adaptability allows interventional radiologists to treat a wide range of conditions using the same technique. Cryoablation has shown promising results in the treatment of small renal tumours, liver tumours, and early-stage breast cancer, among other conditions. Additionally, cryoablation is a relatively safe procedure with minimal complications. The use of imaging guidance, such as ultrasound, CT scans, or MRI, during the procedure helps ensure accurate placement of the cryoablation probes and enhances patient safety. The recovery time is typically shorter compared to traditional surgery, and the procedure can often be performed on an outpatient basis, reducing hospital stays and overall healthcare costs.”

The cryoablation therapy was also recently introduced at the Kovai Medical Center in Coimbatore. Jay Mehta, Director–Sales, NovoMed Incorporation Pvt Ltd, stated, “We are indeed very happy to facilitate the availability of this futuristic and revolutionary technology in India.  The Indian populace should take maximum advantage of the same and freeze cancer in its tracks.”

–          Patients and clinicians are united in a vision for the future; low trust in AI, interoperability, burnout, and care accessibility top the list of challenges

–          Double-blinded quantitative survey of 5,500 patients and patient advocates along with 2,000 clinicians across eight countries, as well as qualitative interviews, examined clinician and patient sentiment about today’s healthcare system

GE HealthCare (Nasdaq: GEHC), a leading medical technology, pharmaceutical diagnostics, and digital solutions innovator, today released Reimagining Better Health, a qualitative and quantitative study that amplifies the perspectives and needs of people at the center of healthcare — patients and clinicians.  The study aims to help inform a path forward as stressors such as burnout, workforce attrition and patient backlogs test the resiliency of health systems. Participants were asked to answer questions pertaining to the healthcare system as a whole based on their personal experiences and observations.

The results reveal many of the developments that are propelling the system forward are also a source of challenges that patients and clinicians experience. Specifically, the study found distrust in AI, low technological interoperability across the healthcare system, workforce burnout, fragmented care collaboration and accessibility to care are some of the pain points today.

“Progress can also bring with it tension. In a specialized field like healthcare, resolving that tension is complex and it starts by listening to those who are at the center of care,” said GE HealthCare President and CEO Peter Arduini. “Reimagining Better Health is a bold reminder of the barriers to overcome, and a call to action to all stakeholders in healthcare to innovate and problem solve with a focus on the needs of patients and clinicians. Together, we can transform these insights into action to build a bridge to the future state– a more human and flexible healthcare system.”

Recognition of the Promise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Coupled with Low Trust

Today, AI technologies in healthcare are designed to improve patient experience and outcomes, automate tasks, and enhance productivity. While a majority of clinicians surveyed believe AI can support clinical decision making (61 percent), enables faster health interventions (54 percent) and helps to improve operational efficiency (55 percent), the study shows distrust and skepticism around AI in medical settings– without reference to specific products– is prevalent among all stakeholders.

Only 42 percent of clinicians overall indicate AI data can be trusted. In the U.S. this number dips to 26 percent.  Clinicians with more than 16 years of experience are even more skeptical of AI, with only 33 percent trusting the quality of AI data. Additionally, clinicians believe that while AI can help to reduce care disparities (54 percent), the technology is also subject to built-in biases (44 percent).

Dr. Guy Lloyd, a cardiologist and specialist in diagnostic imaging who participated in the study, highlights the importance of healthcare leaders preparing for the changes of tomorrow, “AI is going to fundamentally change the way people work,” he predicts. “In my world, which is imaging, we’re going to be moving from interpretation and measuring to communications and contextualization. A challenge is making sure everyone is brought along for the ride.”

Low Trust in New Care Delivery Models

Patients cite greater flexibility in how, where and when healthcare services are delivered as their top priority for the future, even ahead of technology solutions that enable faster detection of potential health issues; however, the flexibility of distributed care administered beyond the walls of the clinic can create challenges.

Half of clinicians are not very comfortable with delivering clinical care outside the traditional clinical environment (50 percent).

Patients are also apprehensive about new care delivery methods and are not very comfortable with at-home or out-of-clinic testing (62 percent) without supervision.  Additionally, who delivers the care matters to patients. While most patients (67 percent) have a high level of trust in their family doctor, trust levels fall when considering other healthcare professionals. Slightly more than half of patients (52 percent) lack trust in healthcare workers who are not hospital doctors or nurses, midwives or pharmacists to provide appropriate health advice.

Connectivity in a Fragmented System

Perhaps some of this discomfort in new care delivery models can be attributed to low technological interoperability across the healthcare system.  Just over half of clinicians say medical technologies seamlessly integrate with each other and are easy to use and intuitive (51 percent and 53 percent, respectively).

While patients and clinicians want relevant patient health data to be available across systems and platforms, this has not been fully realized.  Forty-one percent of clinicians are not convinced they have timely access to reliable electronic patient records, and approximately one-third of patients (35 percent) share concerns that clinicians treating them do not have access to their relevant health data.

The Workforce is Defined by Burnout

A staggering 42 percent of clinicians surveyed reported that they are actively considering leaving the healthcare industry, according to the study. Additionally, 39 percent do not feel a sense of pride in their profession.

Across the eight countries surveyed, inadequate compensation and poor work-life balance were among the top reasons cited for exiting the workforce. Further, 47 percent of clinicians said they do not feel fully supported by leadership. Patients are feeling the impact of clinician burnout, with 43 percent saying they do not feel heard by clinicians and less than half (42 percent) saying clinicians empathize with their personal situation and how it affects their treatment.

A Unified Goal

In terms of a vision for what should lie ahead, 99 percent of clinicians completely or somewhat agree the definition of the future as one in which: patients and care teams are more intimately linked together in a partnership via technology solutions; patient care and medical treatment will take place both within and outside of traditional clinical environments, such as in patients’ homes; and the healthcare ecosystem is expanded to include a more varied range of healthcare workers, some of which may not be present today.

Reimagining Better Health defines a clear goal – a more human and flexible healthcare system.  GE HealthCare is sharing the findings to encourage discussion, partnerships, and actions with stakeholders across the industry: patients, the broad spectrum of healthcare professionals, healthcare leaders, elected government officials, technology industry leaders, and the public.

All are invited to consider their role in overcoming the barriers, so all benefit from better care and an optimized experience. Use #ReimaginingBetterHealth to join the conversation online and help pave the way to a more human and flexible healthcare system.

Soon after launching the 2023 Kodiaq, Škoda Auto India announces additional  allocation of the luxury 4×4 SUV for India, which will enable quicker delivery timelines to customers. The new Kodiaq was first introduced in 2022. However, all cars allocated for the year were sold within a couple of weeks. Appreciating the growing demand, the company has further enhanced supplies for 2023 in India, which is now Škoda Auto’s third largest market and the largest outside Europe after Germany and the Czech Republic.

New for 2023

The Škoda Kodiaq is powered by the 2.0 TSI EVO engine tweaked to meet the new emissions norms. The motor is now 4.2% more efficient than earlier. The luxury 4×4 makes 140 kW (190 PS) and 320 Nm allowing acceleration to 100 kph in just 7.8 seconds (claimed figure). There is one more addition to the Škoda brands array of Simply Clever features – door-edge protectors. They automatically reveal themselves when the doors open, protecting the door edge from dents and scratches. The rear spoiler gets additional finlets to aid airflow and improve aerodynamics of this luxury 4×4. Inside, the rear passengers get a lounge step to rest their foot, and outer headrests in the 2nd row, furthering the luxury and comfort quotient in this 4×4 for the family.

On-road dynamics

The Kodiaq’s legacy with technology that enhances driver engagement and feel remains with the Progressive Steering. It flexes its forces depending on driving conditions and vehicle speed, making the Kodiaq easy to manoeuvre at slow speeds and offering the driver better control at higher speeds. In addition, the first-in-segment Dynamic Chassis Control further adds to the Kodiaq’s quiver of dynamics. Apart from allowing the driver to select between 6 different modes such as Eco, Comfort, Normal, Sports, Snow and Individual driving modes, DCC also enables the suspension to be raised or lowered by 15 mm and hosts an off-road button for enhanced all-terrain abilities when needed.

The Kodiaq, along with the Slavia and the Kushaq, completes Škoda Auto India’s fleet of crash-tested cars, rated 5-stars for both adult and child safety.

To offer luxurious, service-backed shopping experience to patrons in world-class ambience

Showroom is located at Elite Allahabad Bank Road in Civil Lines

Brings brand’s presence to 14 showrooms in Uttar Pradesh

Kalyan Jewellers, one of India’s most-trusted and largest jewellery companies, today launched its brand new showroom in Jhansi. The luxurious showroom located at Elite Allahabad Bank Road in Civil Lines, marks the entry of the jewellery brand in the city. The all-new showroom will offer a luxurious shopping experience to customers, with a wide array of jewellery designs. As part of its Vision 2025 strategy, Kalyan Jewellers has been consistently expanding brand footprint and operations in the region, to supplement its growth and make the brand more accessible to patrons. This is the brand’s 14th showroom in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

Talking about the new showroom launch, Mr. Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director, Kalyan Jewellers said, “We are extremely delighted to launch our first showroom in the city of Jhansi, which offers tremendous growth potential for brand Kalyan Jewellers. As we embark on the next phase of our growth journey, we are focussing on consistently expanding our geographical footprint in the region. Considering the exponential level at which the city is growing, Jhansi is a critical market for us and we aim to offer a best-in-class buying experience to patrons in the region.”

The newly-launched showrooms will feature extensive range of designs from Kalyan Jewellers' jewellery collections, presented in a world-class ambience. Additionally, the “Kalyan Special Gold Board Rate”, which is the lowest in the market and standardized across all company showrooms, will apply, ensuring a seamless and service-backed shopping experience. In celebration of the showroom launch, Kalyan Jewellers is offering a unique promotion of 0% making charges on half the purchase value for customers shopping for a minimum of Rs. 1 lakh. These offers are valid for a limited period only.

The jewellery retailed at Kalyan Jewellers is all BIS hallmarked and goes through multiple purity tests. Patrons will also receive Kalyan Jewellers' 4-Level Assurance Certificate, which guarantees purity, free lifetime maintenance of ornaments, detailed product information, and transparent exchange and buy-back policies. The certification is part of the brand's commitment to offering the very best to its loyalists.

The showroom will also stock Kalyan's popular house brands, such as Lila – diamonds & semi-precious stone jewellery, Tejasvi – Polki jewellery, Mudhra – handcrafted antique jewellery, Nimah – temple Jewellery, Glo – dancing diamonds, Ziah – Solitaire-like diamond jewellery, Anokhi – uncut diamonds, Apoorva – diamonds for special occasions, Muhurat – wedding jewellery, and Rang – precious stones jewellery.

Meesho, India’s only true e-commerce marketplace, has revealed a new brand identity to reinforce how the e-commerce platform helps every Indian derive absolute joy by making a value-first purchase decision. The company aims to strengthen its positioning as a one-stop horizontal platform that meets the everyday needs of millions of Indian shoppers. The brand revamp also aims to showcase the e-commerce platform’s inclusivity with a vast collection of value-first products, and how it’s helping consumers across income segments, geographies, languages, genders and age groups realize their shopping aspirations.

The new color palette features hues of ‘Jamuni’ and ‘Aam’, which encapsulate the vibrancy and grandeur of India’s diversity. According to color theory, Jamuni has an association with aspiration while Aam is seen as inviting and welcoming. The refreshed color palette aims to evoke personality traits of confidence and approachability among Meesho consumers and sellers. However, the logo retains Meesho’s iconic ‘M’, albeit in a more colorful and interconnected avatar – which has been strongly associated with the brand since its inception in 2015.

As part of this initiative, Meesho has leveraged auditory touch points to build an emotional connect with users. Built on the premise of 'all good things arrive with a ting tong', the company’s sonic identity beautifully captures the anticipation and excitement that one experiences while expecting the delivery of an online order. Meesho’s peppy signature track plays during all legs of the customer journey, from clicking on the e-commerce application to receiving a push notification to placing an order. The sonic identity will also be launched in eight languages (Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam and Odia) for a more authentic experience.

“We are thrilled to introduce our revamped brand identity, which symbolizes our transformation into a genuinely inclusive and egalitarian e-commerce platform. The new color palette and sonic identity will add a powerful new dimension to our brand identity, a critical component of how people recognise Meesho today and in the future. We believe there is enormous opportunity for mass adoption of e-commerce in India, and the next wave of growth will come from making it pertinent for all shoppers. With this brand revamp, Meesho will progress further on its journey to become the go-to e-commerce platform for the next billion consumers in India.,” said Vidit Aatrey, Founder & CEO, Meesho.

Over the last eight years, Meesho has built a simple and easy-to-use e-commerce platform that’s helped millions of users and sellers come online. In 2023, as the marketplace continues to scale, this brand refresh will help the company retain its current identity while more accurately reflecting its current growth and scale.

With 140 million annual transacting users, 1.1 million sellers and ~100 million active product listings across 30 categories, Meesho aims to fuel discoverability of a wide assortment of products for both urban and Bharat consumers.

Accelerating the company’s commitment towards ‘Responsible Hosting’, the new campaign is aimed at raising awareness on the importance of drinking water when consuming alcohol

Pernod Ricard India (PRI), a global leader in the wine and spirits industry, today, launched their new campaign ‘Drink More Water’. The campaign is seeking to influence consumer behavior by raising awareness on the importance of drinking water when consuming alcohol. Through this campaign, the company aims to promote responsible drinking with a simple yet powerful call to action: to 'Drink More Water’.

As the world’s leading premium spirits company and ‘Créateurs de convivialité’, Pernod Ricard strongly believes that there can be no conviviality with excess. Throughout the years, the company has been active in playing a role in the prevention and reduction of harmful use of alcohol, through collaborative efforts with industry members, civil society, governments, local authorities, and consumers at large. The ‘Drink More Water’ campaign forms part of this long-standing commitment, aimed at raising awareness on mindful consumption of alcohol and nudging individuals to stay hydrated while enjoying social occasions. Drinking water when consuming alcohol helps to keep the body hydrated, which is why it is strongly recommended to pace oneself with a glass of water. 

Talking about the initiative, Kartik Mohindra, Chief Marketing Officer, Pernod Ricard India, said, “As a responsible corporate, our aim is to ensure that our brands are enjoyed responsibly. Our vision is to create conviviality by turning every social interaction into a genuine and responsible experience of sharing and the ‘Drink More Water’ campaign seeks to do just that. Through this campaign, we are focusing on educating consumers on making the right choices by drinking more water and staying hydrated, thereby creating a more enjoyable & responsible convivial moment.”

Embracing a digital-first approach, the campaign targets an audience above the legal drinking age, complemented by on-ground activations. With an ambitious goal to reach around 30 million consumers in India, the 'Drink More Water' campaign reiterates the company’s commitment to advocate responsible drinking among those who choose to drink. With this initiative, Pernod Ricard India accelerates its commitment towards ‘Responsible Hosting’, which is a key pillar of the company’s Sustainability & Responsibility Roadmap 2030 – ‘Good Times from a Good Place’.

Click here to view the campaign AV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IdVPH2t0hY