Here we interview Founder/CEO Niteen Bhat from the innovative rVita. rVita is based in Santa Clara, CA and states their mission as follows:
... to help people heal themselves with the help of
Integrative, Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Integrative, Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
1) What was the impetus for rVita? What problem does rVita solve?
Finding alternative remedies that work is a long, hard search for Americans. Even after searching, people are left guessing whether it will work. There is not a site that take patients from learning to effective healing, similar to what they are used to in conventional medicine.
Typically people have resorted to friend and family recommendations, but that still is not an exact science. The impetus for rVita was from my personal experience trying to find alternatives for my chronic conditions. In addition, my wife, who is a family practice physician and the co-founder of rVita is seeing an increasing number of patients seeking alternative therapies for their chronic conditions.
2) If not for rVita, what are the sources for similar data on the web?
There are many sources on the web for point solutions in alternative medicine, but users are left judging whether acupuncture or yoga will work their condition. A lot of people start with Google or health web leaders such as WebMD. Searching on Google to find effective remedy is a long process, and the conventional medicine portals cover little on alternative medicine. There are many modality specific players for acupuncture or herbs, but they provide a limited view.
3) How is rVita different from these other sources?
We are the first on in the space to provide a 360 degree view, based on scientific trial facts, and expert and consumer reviews on each remedy. We show scientific and user grades for each remedy. This cuts down search time from hours to minutes. A user trying to find allergies information can know all remedies and their scientific effectiveness and consumer reviews in a few clicks. Then he or she can consult with one of our trusted practitioners. In addition, our content is under the watchful eyes of integrative medicine MD experts, so as to weed out the "snake oil."
4) How will you monetize the site?
Our revenue strategy is based on lead generation and advertising.
5) Is your approach direct-to-consumer, partnering, or both?
We started with direct-to-consumer and are in process of partnering with other companies in this space; both Health 2.0 and brick-and-mortal companies.
6) What does rVita have coming next, that we can/should know about?
We are working to add both breadth and depth to our site; since beta release we are getting requests to cover more conditions, more therapies. In addition, we are working with thought leaders in the integrative medicine space to add expert view points.
Read more in our 25-page segment analyses, one each on:
a. PHR
b. EMR
c. News/Search/Community
d. Digital Home Health.
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