The GOL app — it’s a Gift Of Life
Introduction
There are several cases in which hospitals refuse to give blood to patients who are in desperate need of it, and the justification given by doctors is that, if they give it to one patient, what would be left for others? Doctors fears can be said to be right to a certain degree, since many underprivileged areas of India and other developing and underdeveloped countries have a shortage of fresh stored blood. I am a 1st semester B.Tech Mechanical Engineering student and I am planning to build an app to solve this problem. GOL app helps donors to donate blood within their designated region to any local hospital or blood bank, so that their blood can meet the relevant recipients who are in desperate need of it.
Major areas to be affected
As I have already said GOL app will be successful in many underprivileged sections of India and other developing and underdeveloped countries. By drawing inference from the 2018 statistical results, it is very obvious that India is second among the countries where people are willing to donate blood. The data has been taken from (https://www.statista.com/chart/14892/where-people-are-most-willing-to-donate-blood/)
So, the app will primarily target many parts of India in its early stages. Looking at the numbers, we can claim that every year the total blood units collected for donation in India are increasing, which is a positive sign. Perhaps the most important question is whether this collected blood is reaching the people who really need it.
The State-wise contribution is not universal and varies on a case-by-case basis. In addition, the number of blood banks is also smaller than the population size of these nations.
It can be inferred from the two graphic representations mentioned above that:-
1. While waste is more than 10 percent, to achieve this, it is still less than enough.
2. Collection in 5 States is less than 50 percent of the anticipated requirement.
3. Bihar has less than one Blood Bank for the 10-lakh population.
The above data is taken from (https://fit.thequint.com/health-news/blood-shortage-in-india#read-more) and (https://factly.in/blood-collection-increases-by-12-in-4-years-still-15-short-of-requirement/). My app will target states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Assam etc, according to the data, because the amount of blood collected is less than the amount needed.
Comparing to other products
There are several apps and startups that have led to blood donation, but there are limitations to these apps:-
1. Not updating donor status.
2. False data on donor status is shown.
3. Blood not received by patient
4. Showing donor availability even though at that time he/she is not available.
5. Unable to add a date to the donation.
6. Not showing the receiver or donor contacts.
So GOL will cover these points by supplying the donor, hospital and the receiver with all critical data. Both the donor and the hospital will be able to monitor their status and will also be able to review each other’s messages.
How does the app work?
GOL will be a cross-platform app, which will make it cost-effective. JavaScript will be used for the coding. The entire program would primarily concentrate on 3 separate users, covering all potential loopholes. These 3 users are as follows:-
1. The donor
2. The hospital
3. The receiver
Steps in coding:-
1. The coding of the app is done in such a way that all three users log in to the app either via e-mail or mobile number and enter the OTP sent to them after that.
2. After signing in, donors and receivers will be asked to pick the area under which they will register, closest hospitals, if the receiver is already admitted to the hospital, then the name of the hospital, their blood type, any family history of particular illness, emergency rate. It will be mandatory for donors to fill in the timings of the day they will be available ( This is done only to avoid any complications and save time)
3. Using a similar path, the hospital authority may also login to fill in some important information, such as the location, updating the number of recipients and donors.
4. The hospitals will then review the data and call the donors at the precise timing presented by them.
5. They will receive an e-card after their blood test (to check if there is any sickness and to maintain their blood type records), which will enable them to donate their blood in any part of the country.
6. If either the hospital or the receiver requests for blood donation, the donors will receive a message, in the same way the hospitals will receive if donors request donation or the receivers request blood donation from the hospitals.
7. If the blood is donated, after that within 3–4 days, the donors will have to change their status to ‘Recently donated’ if they will not, reminders will be send to do so.
8. After updating their status, it will display ‘Not available for 56 days (this is only after donating blood), i.e. approximately 2 months, it will be different for donating platelets and automatic double red cell collection.
9. After 2 months, donors will now be reminded to change their status to ‘Available or not’ and ‘Availability schedules’ again.
10. The donor and the hospital will receive a message stating that patient has received the blood.
11. This will be stored in their history.
12. After this they will update their status to ‘Received blood’. The donor/receiver/hospital will then change name, date, year, time of receipt/donation of blood.
Below there is a flow chart to understand the concept much better:-
Product Pricing and marketing
GOL is a non-profitable app, and the aim behind the app is not to make money. The money will be collected once a month every year by fund raising activities to keep the startup going, and by way of raising funds from Wikipedia. I’m going to advertise my product via social networks such as:-
1. Build a business profile on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
2. Engagement on Facebook and other social media in similar communities.
3. Marketing through SMS and E-mail.
4. Starting groups on what’s app.
5. providing promotional codes and discounts on these groups from time to time.
6. By making additions to Youtube, Tumblr, etc.
Risks involved:-
· Risk of unstable user growth:
There will be a high risk of unstable user growth, since it can be unpredictable regarding the number of users. If the number of users is going to be large, i.e. the app has a good start, so each and every user will be assisted in case of a problem, which will increase the workload and pressure. It may be the exact opposite of the above case, that is if the number of users is less, resulting in the startup and the app being poorly started.
· Financial risk:
The lack of financial planning will lead to the entire program being shut down. A successful financial plan is very important to have. It is very necessary to raise funds from time to time for the app as it is a non-profitable service, so it is vital to have good financial support to continue running this.
· Competitive risk:
As there are already applications promoting blood donation, there would be a strong competitive risk. Failure in either area would also contribute to the failure of the entire program.
· Market risk:
The ups and downs of the economy and new consumer patterns pose a challenge to new companies, a certain product may be famous year, but not the next. The competitor could steal market share if a competitor releases a similar product at a lower price.
· Technology risk:
New technologies, particularly in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, are constantly emerging. Heavy investment in new systems and processes is needed, which could have a dramatic effect on start-up development.
Budget estimation and timeline
It will take about 4 lakhs to create a code by hiring a coder, and the price of ads using social media channels will render the total budget about 9 lakhs. This will lead to the start-strong up’s initial growth. The coding will take a minimum of 4 months, but it will be completed within 6 months with some margin. The testing of the GOL app will be completed in 6–12 weeks, so it will be 2 months, and within 3 weeks the app will be released in the market.
