The Business of Health for a Polymath:
How a Polymathic Scientist’s creative superpower & problem-solving abilities have impacted human life
Learnings we were able to apply from my fifth Pandemic…!
We at the polymath collective continue to ponder the links between multiple parts of the mind, and the ability to create innovative solutions and showcase those who have not just raised awareness, but rather, dreamt of an idea, created a machine, tested it, put it to work (at scale), and created a solution to an inherent problem.
A ten year old brown belt in Karate, following on to teach dance for over a decade, decking canvases with oil exhibiting in Brick Lane Gallery…never knew her impact on the planet and continues to operate at the same level of humility, where her aim and purpose is purely to help others.
Manjinder Virk is a biomedical scientist who taps into her polymathic super-powers through the art of multi-tasking, problem-solving abilities stemming from different perspectives, project planning at mass scale, all peppered with creative pazazz… Her expertise helps with patient aftercare, and understanding healthcare infrastructure while restructuring it. We delved deeply into the thought process behind how she created Bioma.
We look at her close links to art, creativity, incessant curiosity, STEM and ability to connect subject matter which led to her create an innovation which can make a real difference to healthcare and its offerings, We look at her perspective when it comes to the real problems which need solving imminently — Longevity and Healthcare — both Infrastructure and R&D.
When I say to others that this is not my first pandemic, it is not out of complacency, rather out of shock and pain that it occurred. I’m not the only one, the global clinical and scientific community are aware of, and have experienced the trauma, fatigue and guilt repeatedly. Looking back to 2019, we have both gained, lost and learned a lot. I choose not reiterate the pain the world went through — it was personal for everyone, and something we will all live with.
Since then, the world has learned more about the human condition, real importance of healthcare, the infrastructure it is embedded in, and that significant change is needed. My escape and outlet? helping solve the problem, using all the knowledge I have to create, implement and execute.
By ‘change’ I mean that this has yet to be defined. We have all been presented with proactive healthcare solutions in various forms, but still need to find the finite solution to prevent this happening again and to protect ourselves whilst the current solutions are either trying to play catch-up, being established and/or substantiated.
Lord Carter’s 2015/2016 report offered concepts to improve operational and
resource efficiencies for the UK’s beloved NHS (National Health Service). This included the Hub, spoke of an efficient operations model for pathology, freeing up valuable ward space and creating a network of
greater patient access. Sadly, this is being provided almost independently of the NHS through the private sector. These networks support the NHS, although access to the NHS infrastructure to ‘speak to the right people’ to allow effective service provision is there for all, it is greatly restricted.
The divide is being created impacts service accessibility due to affordability. Private organisations pay the price of maintaining their services, compliance and training staff at par with NHS standards and are often unable to leverage their expertise and strengths to access larger cohorts who could really use their help. They have the resources to be able
to serve the populations alongside the NHS and often are overlooked as a valuable contributor for both patient care, treatment and training.
Home collection kits, point of care test centres, private pathology
laboratories, online GP consultations, prescribing pharmacists, scan providers and many more services are available within the UK.
After hearing the pain points of patients day in and day out, I’ve listed them at our clinics, shocked that that they did not know a service like ours was even in existence. Not only do we exist, we are here to help.
Bioma is our brainchild, and deeply committed to solving the said problem head on. We are less about awareness, more about ‘find the problem’, raise awareness by asking advocating and spearheading innovative healthcare initiatives for the benefit of the public. Our unwavering dedication extends to harnessing the exceptional skills of our seasoned team to deliver top-tier healthcare services which encompass diagnostics, treatment options, validation of cutting-edge technologies, and an array of scientific and healthcare solutions.
At the core of our mission is the empowerment and development of our staff. We actively recruit from local communities, provide upskilling opportunities for those in need, and offer comprehensive training and seminars. We also collaborate with strategic partners to advance the cause of wellbeing, cancer diagnostics and treatment, community diagnostics, and point-of-care solutions across the United Kingdom.
We firmly believe in fostering open communication as a catalyst for innovation. Our team operates cohesively to formulate strategies and chart the course forward in our business endeavours. In our collaborative environment, no idea is too modest, and we actively encourage self-assurance and cooperation.
Bioma’s journey commenced with an initial angel investment of £500,000, enabling the scientifically led organisation to establish and accredit our first site. Since our inauguration in February 2023, we have diligently established multiple collection sites across the UK, including prominent locations like Birmingham and Knightsbridge. Our extensive network of partners enables us to offer personalised diagnostics and address the wellbeing needs of our patients effectively.
Scientific excellence is at the heart of Bioma, empowering us to validate ground breaking scientific innovations and technologies, contributing to the advancement of healthcare in the UK. We are poised for further expansion into new markets, bringing innovative technologies to a broader audience.
Bioma serves as both a testing ground and validation platform for startups, fully compliant with UK regulations. We meticulously craft validation pathways to ensure that products are not only suitable but primed for successful deployment and rapid commercialisation.
The ideal scenario would be free healthcare for all, but for business longevity our staff and business model are dependent on chargeable services. There are variations in healthcare investment/ spend per person across the UK, where those in areas prevalent with poor health receive increased funding in comparison to other areas. Differences in expenditure can lead to a variation, and perhaps a disparity in quality of care. Sadly, constrains on affordable resources come from budgetary restrictions. This does not apply to the private sector where
standardisation is key to any additional site or service provided.
Now to add some numbers to the mix — According to BMA.org, NHS delivery and workforce funding data analysis
2022/23 spending within the NHS has increased but not in correlation with
demand, but a specific lack in resources allocated to healthcare infrastructure and staffing. The wave of strikes within the healthcare services are not lost to any of us.
These variations in healthcare spending within the last few years can be attributed to the pandemic, whereby increased spending was authorised to allow for mass PCR testing. Health care as a share of GDP fell to 11.3% in 2022 from 12+% in 2021. GDP has grown at greater rate than healthcare expenditure (UK health accounts 2021/2022). There are facts and figures that we do not look for such as how, much is assigned to the NHS to spend on us per person, the average healthcare expenditure per person
across the years averages between £3500–4000+.
As a working example, for the same amount or less per year, a patient who is not suffering with an acute or chronic condition (on a case by case basis) can obtain the following:
1.) Diagnostic blood profiles (multiple times a year if required)
2.) Scans
3.) Private GP consultation
4.) Referral services
And that too, privately, away from the NHS, thus freeing up NHS capacity…!
The NHS is excellent but overrun and needs the pressure eased off. Home collection kit services needs a regulatory framework to prevent under/over testing, the innovations in treatment need to be highlighted to all and signposted with big banners. It frustrates me that we have solutions to implement, but for some reason there is a tiresome delay.
The world has changed a lot in the past few years, we all now know the difference between PCR and lateral flow. I’m personally happy about that, where the more knowledge we share, the better we can be at looking after ourselves and each other. Although subsequently there are new mini- pandemics arising (be they of incorrect information circulating and creating fear, to those producing products and competing for a market that they do not fully understand).
Waiting lists are increasing, the world earlier very tired, but now we’re all raring to continue recovery and move full steam ahead in a very different, more aware way. Change is needed, and awareness is the first step, but solutions like Bioma are already in motion. The next step is to shape the data of such solutions which can then be used as benchmarks for global healthcare.
I do often wonder if it is my love for art, creativity, movement, sports and STEM which have developed my need to come up with so many ideas, make them real, and create solutions to help my patients with their aftercare, but my computer science background has definitely given me an enhanced perspective to understand healthcare infrastructure, and make an attempt to restructure it. Perhaps this is blue sky thinking? It is often said MBAs aren’t useful, but I used mine to build Bioma, and Runes…
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