Lupin’s Patient Support Programme, Humrahi, was recently enhanced to add heart health to its diabetes focus. With Kapil Dev as a brand ambassador, the programme aims to increase awareness, democratise holistic diabetes and heart health, take preventive care beyond the metros and address medical inflation concerns, reports Viveka Roychowdhury
Regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders in the history of cricket, Kapil Dev lifting the 1983 World Cup is an image difficult to forget in cricket-crazy India. These days, he bats for health, and as the brand ambassador for Lupin’s Patient Support Programme (PSP), Humrahi, the cricketing icon was part of a panel discussion organised by global pharma major Lupin Limited (Lupin) as they launched an upgraded version of Humrahi at the recently held Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI) conference in New Delhi.
Already trusted by over 64,000 patients, Humrahi’s diabetes management support programme has been enhanced to support heart health patients as well as diabetic patients managing their cardiac ailments. This is a logical extension as diabetes has a significant impact on heart health.
Thus the refreshed programme bundles diabetes management with cardiovascular care, providing patients with insights into heart-healthy practices, regular monitoring, and expert guidance on managing cardiovascular risks associated with diabetes.
Timed to mark World Diabetes Day, the cricketing icon shared his journey as a diabetic during the panel discussion, urging patients to control their carbs, exercise, take their meds on time and test regularly. “Trusting Humrahi is like trusting your best teammate. It’s a reliable programme that provides consistent support for managing chronic conditions,” stated Kapil Dev.
Other panelists during the discussion included Rajeev Sibal, President – India Region Formulations, Lupin, Dr B M Makkar, Organising Chairman, RSSDI’24, Dr Banshi Saboo, Chair-Elect IDF Southeast Asia Region and Dr Anuj Maheshwari, RSSDI National President-Elect 2024.
Moderated by Rajalakshmi Azariah, VP, Corporate Communications, Lupin, the panel discussion spanned the challenges of therapy adherence, the holistic approach of Humrahi and how the PSP harnesses new age tech to address these challenges, increase access, reduce costs and result in better treatment outcomes.
Besides cardiovascular and anti-diabetes medication, Lupin’s market presence in India and the U.S. spans multiple therapy areas, including respiratory, anti-infective, gastrointestinal, central nervous system, and women’s health. Its subsidiaries, such as Lupin Diagnostics, Lupin Digital Health, and Lupin Manufacturing Solutions, add breadth to its presence in the healthcare space.
A holistic solution to therapy non-adherence
Sibal stressed that Humrahi is more than just a healthcare app, quoting studies that non-adherence to prescribed therapy is as high as 40 to 50 per cent in chronic conditions like cardiovascular and diabetes therapy. This non-adherence, primarily due to a lack of awareness of the consequences, leads to poor treatment outcomes, increasing complications and higher morbidity.
Non-adherence has a higher impact, especially in a price-sensitive market like India, where most treatment costs are out of pocket. This is where programmes like Lupin’s Humrahi provide financial relief. Once enrolled, eligible patients can avail of free medication every three months and complimentary diagnostic services every quarter.
While the main objective of Humrahi is to raise awareness, drive adherence, and provide patients with access to medication for better health outcomes, it also reduces the financial burden of diabetes and heart medications. The programme allows free downloads, with no registration fee or any monthly subscription fees, while offering bespoke counseling sessions on diet, exercise, and stress management via calls, blogs, recipes, podcasts, and videos.
Recalling his own experience, Kapil Dev underlined the importance of raising more awareness about the condition, stressing that awareness enables patients to care for themselves much better.
Dr Maheshwari pointed out that even though India is the ‘pharmacy of the world’, medicines are not the solution as they can only manage diabetes. The aim should be to prevent diabetes. He singled out lack of exercise as the topmost cause of the exponential rise in India’s diabetic population, pointing out that our waking hours have gone from ‘sunrise to sunset’ to a 24×7 life, leaving our bodies little to no time to rest.
Commenting on Humrahi, Dr Maheshwari noted, “Humrahi’s unique approach to ensuring patient privacy and offering tailored support and guidance makes it one of the most patient-friendly platforms.”
Adding that lifestyle changes are the need of the hour, Dr Saboo revealed that studies have showcased that sitting for more than 90 minutes, categorised as prolonged sitting, is considered more dangerous than smoking, as it adds to abdominal obesity. He mentioned a simple marker by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), which states that if a person’s central obesity/abdominal width (waist circumference) is more than half of their height, there is an increasing risk of developing diabetes. Thus, lifestyle changes such as moving from sitting to standing are much required.
Dr Saboo pointed out, “Humrahi focuses on NCDs through a customised unique approach highlighting the importance of education and awareness in a patient’s journey. It is a complete solution that we have long needed in healthcare.”
Dr Makkar outlined that diabetes treatment must go beyond prescriptions, underlining the importance of lifestyle interventions like increasing physical activity, eating healthy etc. He tied it to the 24×7 support provided by the Humrahi programme, which helps patients stick to their medication regime with pill reminders, alerts for quarterly diagnostic tests and customised diet, nutrition and physiotherapy counseling sessions.
Dr Makkar believes that “Humrahi stands out as it empowers patients to take charge of their own health journey with ease.”
A ticking time bomb
As per a recent report published on World Diabetes Day in The Lancet, India now has the largest number of diabetes patients, surpassing China. A quarter of adults living with diabetes globally are in India (212 million of the 828 million), according to the study conducted by the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) in collaboration with WHO.
Based on data till 2022, the other nations with the most diabetics are China (148 million), the US (42 million), Pakistan (36 million), Indonesia (25 million) and Brazil (22 million). The study is the first global analysis of trends in both diabetes rates and treatment.
The launch of the refreshed Humrahi programme was on the sidelines of the 52nd International Annual Conference of the RSSDI, Delhi. This year’s RSSDI report sheds light on India’s growing diabetes challenge. With over 101 million diagnosed cases and an additional 136 million individuals in the prediabetic stage, the report calls for urgent intervention. It highlights the narrowing gap between rural and urban diabetes prevalence due to lifestyle changes and limited access to healthcare. As per the report, the national diabetes prevalence rate now stands at 11.4 per cent, underlining the urgency of targeted, community-based prevention strategies.
The stats for heart disease are equally concerning. Cardiovascular diseases, which are a leading cause of death globally, are responsible for 60 per cent of adult deaths in India. By 2030, cardiovascular disease prevalence is expected to rise to 5.26 per cent, as per an analysis of cardiovascular rates in India between 1990 and 2017. The authors of the study published in May 2020, titled Time-series study of cardiovascular rates in India: A systematic analysis between 1990 and 2017, propose increased investment across the continuum of care to promote, prevent, and rehabilitate cardiovascular disease efficaciously.
As per Fortune Business Report 2024, the global diabetes care market is projected to grow from USD 56.5 billion in 2024 to USD 95.6 billion by 2032, with a CAGR of 6.7 per cent. The global cardiovascular devices market is expected to grow from USD 54.3 billion in 2024 to USD 100.8 billion by 2032, with a CAGR of 8.3 per cent.
The Humrahi approach
Recounting the evolution of Humrahi, Brijendra Singh, Senior VP-Sales & Marketing and Vertical Head, Diabetes, Lupin informed that the Humrahi programme started a decade ago as a companion for India’s diabetic patients to guide them in their journey of living with and managing their diabetes. Initially focused on educating patients on the right technique for insulin injections, the programme expanded over the years to address the main challenge in diabetes management, therapy adherence.
Eligible patients enrolled in the Humrahi programme can access personalised diet counseling, medication assistance, tailored lifestyle modification tips, and more. In addition, eligible enrolled patients can access diagnostic services and avail complementary medication.
The platform provides resources such as blogs, recipes, podcasts, and videos and supports 12 regional languages. Currently available in key cities across India, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, and other tier-2 and tier-3 towns, the programme is accessible to diverse patient groups.
By nudging enrolled patients towards healthier lifestyles and preventive care like regular diagnostics, Humrahi seeks to help them manage their conditions more effectively. This is reflected in the strong foundation Humrahi has in preventive care, allowing patients to predict and mitigate future complications through adopting lifestyle changes and enabling early intervention while regular monitoring with health trackers.
Launched in 2023, Humrahi has achieved ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification, underscoring its commitment to maintaining the highest data privacy and security standards. This certification ensures comprehensive tools and access to care for patients and solidifies trust in the programme’s ability to safeguard sensitive health information.
Given the current and projected disease burden and the fact that there is a high level of undiagnosed incidence of both diabetes and cardiovascular conditions in India, Humrahi democratises diabetes and heart health care beyond the metros breaching socio-economic barriers.
The hope is that as a true Humrahi, the programme continues to expand care, spanning therapies, geographies and, most importantly, by reducing the financial stress of mounting medical inflation. Having set the bar high, will Humrahi live up to the promise in the diabetes capital of the world? Only time will tell.
(The correspondent was part of a media interaction at RSSDI 2024 coordinated by Lupin)