Meet the Innovator: Taj Keshav of NEXVS
Taj and Chat are members of the Social Innovation Lab’s 2019–20 Cohort. To learn more about SIL and the cohort, click here. Join them at our virtual SIL Impact Forum, available here! Stay tuned: Taj’s pitch will be released at 3:45 on Friday, May 29th!
SIL: Tell us about NEXVS. What are you working on?
TK: We are trying to change the way that people interface with medical and social care services in their community. Out of those who call 9–1–1 for a medical emergency, nearly 80% of those patients do not require services from an ambulance or an emergency room, and overspend on care that could be better addressed elsewhere. At NEXVS, we are building coordinated care systems for local 9–1–1 and health systems to better address the management of complex health issues among persons living in their communities.
SIL: Why did you decide to start this? Where did the idea come from?
TK: Many local health systems are faltering underneath the burden of 9–1–1 overuse. They are unable to get resources efficiently to those who need them, and those who call 9–1–1 for non-emergency health issues are left with medical expenses thousands more than what they can afford, only because they went to the ER when they didn’t need to. Many jurisdictions have responded to this by creating Mobile Integrated Healthcare/Community Paramedicine (MIH-CP) programs, but these programs are often underfunded and understaffed, lack a cohesive long term strategy and vision and rely on archaic technology for communication and data analysis. Since we have experience in public health, monitoring and evaluation and analyzing big data, we saw an opportunity to help transform local MIH-CP programs to radically change the landscape of how community-level health services are provided.
SIL: What would you consider success for NEXVS? How will the world be different when you are successful?
TK: Our idea of success is to work ourselves out of business. We know America’s healthcare landscape is changing. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is the nation’s agency responsible for Medicare and Medicaid policy, implementation and evaluation. They are starting to shift away from volume-based healthcare financing, where quantity of services given is the main focus, to value-based healthcare financing, where quality of services matter the most. As a result, there is going to be a huge shift in how all healthcare institutions provide care for their patients.
We are simply helping with that transition in a system that is traditionally overlooked: 9–1–1 and local public health systems. If we can work to reach a point where all local systems can function autonomously at their peak capacity to deliver high quality medical care to anyone in their community, we will consider ourselves successful.
SIL: What have you accomplished so far?
TK: Over the past six months, we identified a problem, conducted customer interviews to better analyze it, organized as an LLC and are currently building an emerging clientele of public and private healthcare administrators interested in our work.
SIL: What advice do you have for would-be social entrepreneurs thinking about starting a venture?
TK: Talk to as many people as you can about your idea! Sometimes, entrepreneurs tend to get very protective and attached to whatever we are working on. We found that by letting go and sharing those ideas openly with people at a very early stage, we got crucial feedback that allowed us to pivot early and better work towards making this idea a reality. Also, it helped us to make connections with people we never thought we would get the chance to speak to. Taking that first step forward to connect with others can make a world of difference.
SIL: What can we do to help you? How can we get involved?
TK: Please share our SIL Impact Forum page and pitch video with anyone you know who would be interested in our mission and what we are trying to accomplish! Specifically, we are looking for those with experience in financial management, legal expertise for small business, cybersecurity and marketing/design to join our team and help us manage our operations. If, after watching our pitch, you know of any persons in healthcare administration or local government interested in our services, please share our materials with them!
You can connect with Taj and NEXVS at SIL’s Impact Forum online, starting May 18th! Details available at this link. A contact form is available at NEXVS’ event page.
