DaTangYi: Building a Chronic Disease Management Cloud Hospital

First partnering with Da Te Bao to develop O+O model blood sugar control insurance, and then joining hands with Bayer, the Chronic Disease Care Fund of the Chinese Red Cross Foundation, and the Education and Management Group of the Diabetes Branch of the Chinese Medical Association to jointly create the “Power+ China Postprandial Blood Glucose Optimization Management Platform Project,” HuiMa Medical’s subsidiary app, Da Tang Yi, has been making frequent moves recently. It is gradually perfecting its intended commercial closed loop and advancing toward the ultimate goal of building a cloud hospital for chronic disease management.

According to Wu Jingyu, Co-founder and CEO of HuiMa Medical, the cloud hospital model is particularly well-suited for chronic disease management. Patients with chronic conditions require professional, effective, one-stop management services that integrate in-hospital and out-of-hospital care, with seamless coordination between software and hardware. In fact, the primary challenge for diabetic patients lies in the lack of effective blood glucose management strategies and the inability to obtain timely medical advice when encountering issues outside the hospital setting—precisely the problems that Da Tang Yi aims to address.

Three Major Pain Points and Four Challenges in Blood Glucose Management for Patients with Diabetes

Data shows that in China, one in every 11 adults suffers from diabetes. In 2015, the number of diabetic patients in China exceeded 109.6 million. While the prevalence of diabetes has been rising year by year in China, the rate of achieving glycemic control targets has been declining. Evidently, despite the wide availability of diabetes medications, patient self-management is a critical factor influencing glycemic control rates.

Wu Jingyu stated that the three major pain points in self-management for diabetes patients in China are: difficulty in obtaining timely assistance when feeling confused or helpless, poor self-management capabilities, and lack of treatment continuity. The challenges faced include: difficulty in consistently following up on the setting of individualized treatment goals, challenges in implementing personalized education, patients’ difficulty in establishing self-management habits, and the time-consuming and labor-intensive nature of blood glucose data collection by healthcare professionals.

Comparison of Diabetes Prevalence and Blood Glucose Control Rates Among Chinese Adults

“For diabetic patients, each outpatient visit—after queuing and registering—yields only about five minutes of consultation time. This brief window is insufficient for patients to fully understand their condition or have their diabetes-related questions answered.” Wu Jingyu told VCBeat that, in such circumstances, patients are left feeling helpless. Furthermore, regarding physicians’ ability to monitor patients’ home blood glucose levels, traditional channels provide no means of obtaining this data, thereby preventing doctors from offering timely advice.

"In fact, the first step of Datangyi is to provide an out-of-hospital communication platform for both doctors and patients."

Make Blood Glucose Management a Lifestyle for Patients

Wu Jingyu explained that patients with diabetes can be broadly categorized into three groups. The first group comprises highly self-disciplined individuals who adhere to exercise regimens, dietary adjustments, and regular blood glucose monitoring even without medical supervision, thereby achieving effective disease management. The second group consists of patients who remain noncompliant and fail to prioritize their condition despite medical guidance. The third group, which constitutes the majority, includes patients whose behaviors can be positively influenced through professional medical supervision and effective management tools; this segment represents the target user base for Da Tang Yi.

For this patient population, Da Tang Yi provides an effective management tool that features physician consultations, personalized blood glucose target setting, and tailored dietary and exercise recommendations.

“Most patients of Da Tang Yi are added by doctors, establishing a familiar doctor-patient relationship. After outpatient visits, patients can consult online if they have any questions. During their next outpatient visit, patients can simply show their blood glucose data on their mobile phones to the doctor, eliminating the need to carry notebooks filled with densely recorded values.” Wu Jingyu mentioned that the Da Tang Yi system will become increasingly intelligent, gradually incorporating risk control features and reminding patients when to undergo specific complication screenings based on their condition.

Blood glucose entry on the Da Tang Yi app is divided into two types: manual entry and import via the Miyou Box. Wu Jingyu stated, “We have no intention of developing hardware ourselves; we only need to collect data through appropriate means.” It is understood that the Miyou Box can currently interface with 15 mainstream blood glucose meters.

As validated by the market, current treatment regimens for diabetes patients are well-established, yet the target achievement rate stands at only approximately 25%. Only through systematic intelligent reminders and enabling patients to consult familiar healthcare professionals online for issue resolution can patient adherence and ultimate target achievement rates be significantly improved.

For this very reason, the “Power+ China Postprandial Blood Glucose Optimization Management Platform Project,” hosted by the Chronic Disease Care Fund of the Chinese Red Cross Foundation, with academic support from the Education and Management Group of the Diabetes Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, supported by Bayer Healthcare Co., Ltd., and featuring mobile platform services provided by the Da Tang Yi APP, was launched nationwide in 2016.

This project will also implement optimized postprandial blood glucose management both in-hospital and out-of-hospital across 220 general hospitals nationwide. Spearheaded by 1,000 diabetes specialists, the initiative will provide a three-month service of optimized postprandial blood glucose management through online health consultations via the DaTangYi APP (China Postprandial Blood Glucose Optimization Management Platform) and offline patient education activities, guiding patients in scientific self-management of blood glucose. Approximately 80,000 newly diagnosed patients with elevated postprandial blood glucose and those failing to meet postprandial blood glucose targets are expected to benefit from this program.

“In short, we aim to make blood glucose management a lifestyle for patients—simple yet professional. Medical services must ultimately prevail through professionalism, and the professional services provided by doctors cannot currently be disrupted by the internet,” said Wu Jingyu.

Help Doctors Manage Patients

Datangyi, positioning itself as a “professional CRM patient management system for endocrinologists,” has accumulated 15,000 registered physicians. This pool of physician resources constitutes a significant competitive advantage for Datangyi.

“For physicians, leaving the traditional healthcare system to seek better practice opportunities is an inevitable trend,” stated Wu Jingyu. He noted that for doctors to engage in multi-site practice, they need to build their own patient base. Datangyi helps physicians maintain communication with patients, providing them with an opportunity to expand their follower base. “A physician from a tertiary Grade A hospital previously managed only around 500 patients offline. After adopting Datangyi, this doctor now manages approximately 1,000 patients online. By logging into the app three to four times daily and spending just 10–20 minutes, the physician can effectively manage patients. This has increased patient return visit rates, ensured faster ward turnover, and saved patients considerable time and effort traveling to and from the hospital.” Datangyi provides physicians with tools such as intelligent patient grouping, bulk messaging, and patient education materials, enabling efficient management of large patient volumes. Additionally, Datangyi employs diabetes care managers who assist physicians in patient management by answering basic questions and conducting telephone follow-ups, thereby reducing physicians’ workload. In reality, follow-up patients do not have numerous questions every day. While inquiries may be more frequent during the initial follow-up period, patients gradually acquire more disease-related knowledge and achieve more stable blood glucose levels, leading to fewer questions over time. Once patients master scientific self-management methods, they enter a positive phase of self-care, consulting physicians only when more complex issues arise. From this perspective, Datangyi also serves as a means to improve patient adherence.

To further enhance physicians' work efficiency, DaTangYi will also research and develop an intelligent Q&A chatbot. When patients raise simple questions or ask questions that have already been answered by experts, the chatbot can provide direct responses.

The Glucose Monitoring Wars: How Datangyi Emerged as a Dark Horse

Datangyi faces considerable competition in the market. However, Wu Jingyu believes that other B2C models are inherently flawed, as they fail to address the challenges of precise customer acquisition via the internet and ensuring user stickiness. Datangyi’s key differentiator lies in its physician-centric approach, adhering to the traditional medical B2B2C model. By leveraging extensive high-quality physician resources, it provides patients with professional glycemic control services. The advantages Datangyi has established in physician networks and medical services have attracted numerous strategic partners. It is reported that, in addition to collaborating with Datebao to create an HMO model and partnering with Bayer and the Red Cross Foundation on postprandial blood glucose management projects, Datangyi is also an official partner of the National Health and Family Planning Commission’s Center for Chronic Disease Management. Together, they are exploring app-based management models in the context of internet healthcare and have initiated randomized, double-blind, controlled trials to demonstrate that the Datangyi app can effectively reduce glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. Furthermore, Datangyi is poised to deliver high-quality glycemic control services to a large user base of major consumer-facing internet platforms.

Wu Jingyu believes that optimizing the physician-facing side and delivering professional services centered on healthcare providers is the only path to earning patient recognition.