These Two Sisters Are Changing How New Yorkers Approach Preventive Healthcare
We all know the feeling. You’re lying in bed, tissue in one hand and a hot cup of tea in the other, longing for the good old days (aka last week) when your nose wasn’t stuffy. While getting sick is often a result of unavoidable exposure to bacteria or viruses, many Americans underestimate the power of putting time and effort into preventative healthcare. According to the CDC, in fact, Americans use preventive health services “at about half the recommended rate.’’ Instead, we tend to wait for symptoms to occur before we actually do anything about them. If Americans were to input more preventive health care measures into their daily routine, sick days and trips to the doctor could be avoided. This idea rang especially true for nurse Bracha Banayan, who, throughout her time working at InterFaith Medical Center, realized how many of her patients simply lacked proper hydration and vitamins. Through her experiences, Bracha was also made aware of the physical toll that typical daily demands took on her patients. She understood that the last thing people want to do is sit at a doctor’s office or hospital, when they have a multitude of other things to do.
As a result, Bracha sought to create a health service that would require minimal effort, yet yield big results for consumers. In 2016, she joined forces with her sister Aviva, who has a background in business and operations. Together, they launched IVDRIPS, an intravenous hydration and nutrition therapy service that is meant to replenish your body’s essential nutrients. With one phone call or click of a button, you can have an IVDRIPS registered nurse administer a drip right in your living room within a matter of hours. This kind of service and others like it shook up the preventative healthcare industry by giving people easy access to intravenous hydration and nutrition therapy that does not interfere with their pre-existing daily routines. Think other on-demand businesses, like Postmates or TaskRabbit, but for hydration fluids.
Today, IVDRIPS addresses health issues that are both preventative and reactive. “When people have food poisoning, prenatal nausea or a hangover, the last thing they want to do is leave the comfort of their bedroom,” says Bracha. “So we decided they didn’t have to.” The sisters have created multiple on-demand drip formulas, such as the “Post Surgery Drip”, the “Hangover Drip” and “Prenatal Drip”. Clients can also receive a custom drip by filling out a simple quiz or describing symptoms to their assigned nurse.
Bracha and Aviva are not only taking part in a major shift within the preventive healthcare market, but also make sure to differentiate themselves through their customary follow-up practices. That is, Bracha or one of the IVDRIPS nurses will personally pick up the phone and check in on their clients to either see how they are feeling or answer any questions. And this, she remarks, is her favorite aspect of the job. “The most satisfying part of my business has been following up with my clients and hearing the positive results about how they feel better, more energized and hydrated,” Bracha. “Knowing that I was able to create something to help people live better lives is something that continuously motivates me.”
Through IVDRIPS, Bracha and Aviva continue to push to bring preventative healthcare to the forefront of people’s routines, in order to reach their goal of “redefining IV infusion and IV hydration in a hospital setting and re-associating it with healthy drippin’”.