Technology in Pharmacy Business with Scott Carpenter

The Perfect Blend of Health & Technology

February 18, 2022

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In this episode of the Pharmacy View Podcast, host Scott Carpenter, EVBC is joined by Alex Ferguson, CFO / COO at Evolt IOH, a technology driven health and wellness company that is powering connected and digital health. Listen in as the two talk about this end-to-end digital solution that takes an evidence-based approach to its development and practical usage.

Alex started out as a Chartered Accountant and worked in the financial industry in London UK and Canada for over half a decade before making his way back home to Australia. He’s now the CFO/COO of Evolt IOH and the work, he says, has allowed him to understand how technology can make a huge impact in the health segment. Alex further explains how they use validated Bio Impedance Technology to assess a whole bunch of benchmarks and use that data to help the customers.

Even though the company initially and mostly focused on gyms, they work across numerous verticals really—from the corporates to the government, from pharmacies to allied health. The key, he says, is to use the technology and the data thus produced to not only keep members engaged but also honest to their needs.

Alex believes that the technology offers limitless opportunities when it comes to working with Pharmacies, not just in Australia but across the world. He uses the case of supplements to further his point. In its result sheet, the technology collects a whole bunch of data and after having cross analysed that with customer’s body composition and the goals they have, recommends training or nutrition program—also supplements that the Pharmacies can sell.

Alex emphasises that data doesn’t lie and having a wide range of data has enabled the technology to explore limitless opportunities in this every changing and fast evolving industry. The data they collect gives access to trends and patterns and that enables the customer to act quickly. Remedial action to better one’s health could be one of those actions.

And what’s more? Sir Richard Branson raves about Evolt’s machine and in fact rated it a 10/10 when he came across one on a cruise ship. He loves the Evolt machine, it seems! Alex sees the business growing and expanding in the coming years and is excited for what lies ahead. AI and machine learning, he adds, make the future of this amalgamation of health and technology, all the more important.

Topics Covered

Blend of Health Care and Technology
Diverse Clientele
Connection between Gyms and Pharmacies
Opportunities of Using Data
Future of Technology

Key Quotes (Time Stamps)

“Our product really—it’s three parts to it. So, the actual technology has been around for some time, Bio-Impedance Technology. We are sending that electrical current through the body to assess a whole bunch of benchmarks. What we’ve done differently is that we’ve added a whole layer of content and software across that data to make it accessible. So, not only pinging that data directly into the cloud from the machine so it’s also accessible from anywhere but also, if, for instance, we are working with a large group of even pharmacies, the head office can consolidate that data and you know look at some really interesting trends, demographics, who’s the fittest city, state etc. And also keep a good eye on their members, their customer base, and try and help them wherever they can.” (5:33 – 6:30)

“And then we’ve also got an app that the end user, the actual customer can keep on their phone or their device. And that’s where it keeps them honest. If they are working on a training plan or a nutrition plan.” (6:44 – 6:57)

“But at the moment or initially, our fitness and health, gym area is the space we’re focused on. We are in some of the largest gym chain in the world—Anytime Fitness. They’ve got over 5000 locations and they are using this data to make sure they can keep their members engaged. Because in that market, they lose about 40% of their sign-up members each year.” (7:55 – 8:20)

“Part of the content we provide when we print out what we call our result sheet is a whole bunch of recommendations on potential supplements. So, we’ve got quite a lot of data on micro, macro nutrient statistics. And we base in on customer’s or member’s body composition, and the goals they want to set themselves whether that be through a training program or nutrition program.” (10:16 – 10:44)

“The amount of data we’re collecting worldwide just gives us access to trends and patterns and being able to really show those kinds of patterns and if something needs to be done quickly.” (13:20 – 13:32)

“The data tends to not lie when you’ve got a large volume of it to back up those patterns.” (15:23 – 15:31)

“It’s forever changing and quickly. So, we’re at the moment, looking at a lot of AI and machine learning to try and use that data as best we can.” (19:39 – 19:50)

Social Media Clips (Time Stamps)