DXY.cn Files IPO Prospectus: Pioneering Chronic Disease Management Through 'Data + Service'

Dingxiangyuan, which started as a doctors’ forum, has been deeply entrenched in the PC space for 16 years. In 2011, Dingxiangyuan began its foray into the mobile sector. Li Tiantian, founder of Dingxiangyuan, shared key insights and lessons learned from the company’s pioneering efforts in mobile.



Li Tiantian's Key Insights:

1. The optimal use cases for mobile health are in home settings or primary care institutions;

2. Data is captured through technology, while services are manifested through interaction;

3. The Best Approach to Chronic Disease Management: Data + Services;

4. More pharmaceutical companies are becoming “patient-centric”;

5. To succeed in the healthcare industry, one must remain composed and have the patience to refine products meticulously.

The optimal use cases for mobile health are in home settings or primary care institutions.

The optimal use cases for mobile health are in primary care institutions or home settings, rather than in large public hospitals. “This is not to say that mobile health is useless for large hospitals; it is just not as critical as it is for primary care and home nursing.”

Second, the optimal users of mobile health are individuals with chronic diseases or disabilities, whose needs can be met by primary healthcare services; whereas patients with intractable, critical, or complex rare diseases should seek care at large public hospitals.

Data is captured through technology, while services are manifested through interaction.

The largest mHealth conference in the United States was called the mHealth Summit until 2015, when it was renamed cHealth (CONNETHealth).

From mHealth to cHealth, mHealth has not disappeared; rather, it has moved to the underlying layer to collect data. It leverages wearable devices and mobile applications to capture valuable clinical data from the human body, followed by data exchange and connectivity. This connectivity extends beyond personal health data to include healthcare institutions, as well as insurance providers, pharmacies, fitness centers, diagnostic services, and medical imaging. The integration of these diverse data sources ultimately yields a comprehensive, panoramic data outcome.

In the future, an increasing number of medical devices, wearable devices, and even implantable devices will be capable of collecting various physiological data from the human body. This data will ultimately generate cloud-based clinical decisions to guide physicians in formulating comprehensive treatment plans. Upon receiving these recommendations, patients will continuously improve their conditions through enhanced exercise regimens. The resulting data will then be integrated back into the system, creating a closed-loop service model.

Mobile healthcare has evolved from a single app into a service that integrates more scenarios, devices, and participating partners.

The Best Approach to Chronic Disease Management: Data + Services。

Li Tiantian summarizes the four major data characteristics of chronic disease management as the “4Cs”: first, clinical significance; second, real-time data that can be collected at the present moment; third, continuity; and fourth, shareability, which enables greater data diversity.

Data can be acquired through technology, while services are delivered through interaction.

Dingxiangyuan offers two types of interactive services: one is called Education, and the other is Consultation. Education includes not only patient education but also physician education. Dingxiangyuan provides diabetes management services and has recruited full-time physicians, nurses, and health-education-specialized dietitians.

Patient education is highly complex. It begins with training service personnel and establishing a standardized process-based service system. Patient education must be not only standardized but also personalized. Such personalization should be driven by data-driven insights. Once these data are obtained, it is essential to go beyond one-way, dissemination-style education and actively engage patients through inquiries and dialogue—this constitutes Consultation.

Among the questions raised by patients, some are common issues while others are specific ones. These require responses from dedicated health education specialists and nutritionists; only if they cannot resolve the issues should the queries be escalated to physicians. Therefore, in a consultation framework, physicians and patients must be positioned within a hierarchical structure. This structure resembles a pyramid: simpler questions form the base, while the complexity of inquiries increases toward the apex. This tiered approach places significant demands on the professional expertise of physicians at the top level.

Li Tiantian cited two examples to illustrate the “data + services” model. The first is the collaboration among DXY, ZhongAn Insurance, and Tencent’s Tang Daifu.

After the Tencent Tang Dafu glucose meter collects data, it is directly synchronized to WeChat. DXY’s service personnel can view the data directly from the backend, where education specialists interact with patients to help manage their condition. ZhongAn Insurance plays a role in incentivizing patients to monitor their blood glucose levels. For each normal blood glucose test result recorded by a diabetic patient, ZhongAn Insurance increases the coverage amount by RMB 100, up to a maximum of RMB 20,000, as a form of reward.

DXY recruited 500 users for sample analysis. After six months, 492 of them demonstrated a trend of stable or declining blood glucose levels. Li Tiantian stated that DXY will strengthen its collaboration with ZhongAn Insurance and Tang Da Fu this year.

The second case involves DXY’s offline clinics. Currently, DXY operates five offline clinics, with three located in Hangzhou and two in Suzhou. These clinics also adopt a “data + interaction” model, with patient data hosted on DXY’s platform. This enables real-time online interactions between patients and healthcare providers even after patients leave the clinic. Furthermore, DXY’s clinic platform is integrated with WeChat.

Foreign clinics advocate a concept called “Never Hospital,” which emphasizes not the avoidance of hospital discharge, but rather the continuity of hospital services. Clinics should leverage the internet to enable sustained patient engagement and telemedicine capabilities, thereby enhancing patient experience and driving an increase in service volume.

In the ecosystem of chronic disease management, in addition to doctors, insurance companies, hardware device manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies should also participate.

More pharmaceutical companies are beginning to adopt a “patient-centric” approach.

In fact, pharmaceutical companies are already undergoing certain changes. At a recent conference I attended in Barcelona, executives from major global pharmaceutical firms focused their discussions on “patient-centricity.” During this meeting, I observed three shifts within the industry: first, a transition from focusing on physicians to focusing on patients; second, a shift from technology-driven to service-driven models; and third, a move from working in isolation toward collaboration.

① Shifting focus from physicians to patients. Previously, pharmaceutical companies sought to educate physicians to drive prescribing; now, they propose placing patients at the center, emphasizing not only physician education but also patient education.

② Transition from technology-driven to service-driven models. Provide automated services to consulting patients to help alleviate their stress;

③ From going it alone to collaboration. Pharmaceutical companies, which once believed they could handle every link in the industry chain independently, are now increasingly partnering with physicians and insurance companies.

However, smaller companies tend to be more agile and efficient in their transformation. A typical example is UCB. UCB, a manufacturer of anti-epileptic drugs (commonly known as treatment for “grand mal” seizures), acquired a company specializing in service dogs. This acquired company helps train small dogs to detect impending seizures in patients in advance, allowing the patient to lean on the dog during an episode to prevent fall-related injuries. The CEO of this company stated that she never focuses on performance metrics; instead, they are solely accountable to patients, dedicating most of their daily efforts to determining how best to serve them.

Novartis assigns dedicated personnel to simulate the experience of heart failure patients and immerse themselves in their daily lives, thereby enhancing patient care.

Success in the healthcare industry requires composure and the patience to refine products.

In Taiwan, there is a small clinic that specializes exclusively in diabetes care. The physician, now in his sixties, sees only 60 to 80 patients annually. Although the clinic lacks smart glucose meters and data-driven approaches, its diabetes management services are truly impressive.

Nurses and health education professionals at this clinic accompany patients to grocery stores, advising them on which vegetables are high in sugar and which foods are safe to consume. After shopping, they also evaluate the patients’ meal preparation. Additionally, they take patients on three-day trips across Taiwan—not for leisure, but to train them in managing blood glucose levels and administering injections independently while away from home. This approach addresses a common concern among individuals diagnosed with diabetes: the fear that they can no longer travel long distances due to the risk of falling ill.

They have persisted in this endeavor for ten years, with five to ten patients visiting his clinic each day. Li Tiantian believes that whether doctors are serving patients individually or as part of a team, and whether the approach is technology-driven or service-driven, patience and dedication are essential to refining their offerings.