B Pharma, PGDMM, MPWE-IIMB
Founder & Managing Director,
Director IIMF (Institute
of Integrative Medicine Foundation for Research & Education)
Dear Patrons,
Greetings from WELLBEEING!
Your health and well-being does not have much to do with the medical care you receive. Perhaps not
very surprising, if you are already aware of the gamut of influences that contribute to your well-being -
behavioral, emotional, environmental and social factors.
But certainly eye-opening, if you believe flexing
money and tech power alone equals well-being. The privilege to health begins with access to
information, media, and technology and moves on to the availability of food in our neighborhood,
association influence and work-life balance among a zillion other tertiary factors. And remember, none
of these have anything to do with sophisticated medical care constantly packaged and proposed to you.
Although the medical curriculum and the medical system as such hasn’t changed in the last few decades,
patients’ needs have changed drastically over the years and today, there is a humongous gap between
the competence of the curriculum and the healthcare requirements of the population. Statistics reveal
that the number of patients with chronic health conditions is increasing at an alarming rate. Considering
the present medical conditions at our disposal and the lifestyle that most of the Indian population has
adopted, it is predicted that over 20% of Indians are likely to suffer from some form of mental illness.
However, owing to stigma associated with mental illness coupled with a lack of awareness and limited
access to professional help, only 10-12% of these patients seek help. Doctors who practice functional
medicine confirm that "only about 20% of our health status is attributable to health access to medical
care, while another 20% is tied to genetics." This proves that lifestyle factors and social determinants
have an incredibly important impact on a healthy lifestyle.
What's further alarming is that lifestyle diseases such as hypertension and diabetes affect 1 in every 5
Indian adults living in urban cities. Diabetes affects many parts of the body and is associated with serious
complications within the system, such as heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure, apart from
cognitive impairment among other conditions. Each of these chronic problems has a large impact on an
individual’s mental health. The Covid mayhem has been an evidence to this and how! Right now, caring
for this new population that has straddled the pandemic, a global health issue and individual well-being,
a personal issue, requires an entirely different mindset.
By addressing these important health and medical concerns, by always focusing on people's health,
social and family determinants and by tirelessly striving for excellence, WELLBEEING has seen numerous
positive results in patients who sought treatment here. The results and the patients' testimonials
represent the most recent tangible expression of our mission: creating healthier communities and
providing quality ageing through the Integrative & Functional Medicine approach. The team of doctors
see the disease as a whole and adopt a multi-pronged approach to treatment. It is intended to be
‘patient-centric’ and not ‘disease-centric,’ which means every patient's individual parameters are
honored and the treatment is offered with customized plans, which assure sustainable health and
wellness.
At WELLBEEING, our three fundamental objectives in order to make a difference in this nascent yet
promising industry loaded with potentiality are:
- To transform WELLBEEING into a health care provider and not just a clinic system, in order to ensure basic human needs are addressed with a personalised approach, as a universal standard for healthcare
- To influence the way medicine could be practiced for better quality of life and thereby treat the person as a whole entity comprising mind, body and spirit.
- To create an ecosystem in the community, where we extend support and build awareness about health and well-being, the ripple effects of which will benefit larger communities, societies and further on, the nation and countries across the globe.
Let's now draw your attention to a couple of experiences of our integrated team of doctors, which
demonstrate the benefits of our health and wellness program:
A diabetic patient approached WELLBEEING with trouble attending to his everyday activities in general
and driving in particular due to double vision or diplopic vision. This was due to nerve paralysis, a result
of prolonged diabetes. The health advisor with a care coordinator at WELLBEEING first counselled him
and advised him to enroll for the ‘Diabetes Reversal Program’. The results at the end of the two-months
may be miraculous to the uninitiated but obvious to be familiar with Integrative and Functional
Medicine. Under the guidance of a competent Diabetologist and an expert team of doctors: this
patient's vision was restored upto 98%, his fasting sugar dropped to normalcy, there was substantial
improvement in general well-being, there was a spike in energy levels and overall reduction in his
medications drastically. Today, he cheerfully drives to the clinic by himself and confidently attends to all
his daily activities without a worry.
Now, look at this instance: A 48 yr-old entrepreneur approached WELLBEEING with chronic digestive
disorder, diabetes and hypothyroid which were persistent for over 10 years and BP for over 12 years.
Bombarded with a series of various medication every day, maintaining a work-life balance was
challenging for him. His wife enrolled him into WELLBEEING's DRP program. A comprehensive screening
and risk analysis were meticulously executed due to the numerous issues. The expert team of doctors
had to address his stress levels, work at reducing the underlying symptoms and control his sugar levels
with certain corrections in food habits. With close monitoring along with therapies and treatment
interventions, in a span of 3 months, his BP reduced from 150/100 to 110/70 mmhg, Thyroid antibodies
(TPO) reduced from 1300 to 130 mg/dl which, cholesterol restored to normalcy and there was
significant improvement in Vit D levels. Evidence through D-RAP technology (disease risk analysis)
proved that arterial health and nervous system (ANS) were back to healthy.
Similarly, people who approached us with Parkinson’s, fertility issues, hormonal imbalances,
autoimmune disorders, etc. completed our programs successfully, with their health and well-being
restored to normalcy. These problems that are categorized as chronic disorders are rather common and
inter-related, yet the conventional medical practice prescribes multiple medications for each of the
symptoms, which can sometimes be confusing to the mind and body.
Integrative and Functional approach to medicine and treatment sounds very simple and basic at the
outset but in reality that's all it takes, to care for people's health and well-being. Non-traditional
approaches to health care helps people thrive in their most natural environment, providing them with
the little things that we often take for granted. And this approach to health and wellness in my opinion,
has a huge and lasting impact on our communities. We, at WELLBEEING are very excited about such
sustainable transformations in the people who approach us. The hearty smiles accompanying the
impressive results of our patients who have sought preventive, curative, reversal and rehabilitative care
at WELLBEEING has been most satisfactory. It has encouraged us to deep dive further into more research to create scientific evidences and evolve many standardized and personalized protocols in
integrative and functional medicine. This in turn would enable us to treat and transform lives of more
people suffering from chronic diseases.
Our endeavor has undoubtedly been challenging from inception and the entrepreneurial journey, like all
others, is nothing short of a roller-coaster ride. However, tenacity to our purpose - that of marrying the
two systems - western and eastern medicine for effective results and promising opportunities to treat
illness, with a multi-pronged holistic approach, motivated us to pursue our effort to evolve constantly.
We think it’s high time we redefine our health system: our nation, which introduced medicine to the
world possesses a treasure trove of over 5000 years of knowledge of traditional medical science hidden
in various forms. Time to redefine our healthcare system has surely arrived. Today, I am positive that
this is the collective opinion of doctors, academicians and the common man. I am equally confident that
no other country can take up the leadership stance in 'Integrated and Functional Medicine’ as much as
this country can. However, this requires significant support in terms of human resources, funds,
advanced technology and like-minded health professionals to come together, to collaborate, ideate and
create. WELLBEEING is successful in its endeavor and is consistent in its unwavering spirit and pursuit of
excellence over the past decade with the staunch support of competent doctors and specialists who are
extremely passionate about this journey. And we are all set to take charge of the decades to come.
To put it simply, Integrative and Functional Medicine is the future! The future of health care lies outside
of the traditional limitations of the hospital premises. The future of healthcare rests in the assurance
that is given by an evolved healthcare system that concentrates on wellness care rather sickness care,
one that focuses on clear outcomes such as higher quality, lower costs, higher value and better overall
safety. This is our earnest strife at WELLBEEING - holistic well-being that every individual is aspiring for.
Warm regards,
Dr. Roopa Lakshmi (H.C)
