Interview Jack van Dooren: "Human logic does not always work within the social and care domain"

Jack van Dooren is the founder of the start-up MijnPIA. In 2022, he participated in the SocialTech Startup Network Series along with eight other startups. This program from the municipality of The Hague, Yes!Delft and InnovationQuarter aims to give the best start-ups from all over the country the tools and knowledge they need to bring their solution to market. With the insights Jack gained during the program, he and his company assistant developed PIA. Now, almost a year later, it's time to look back. We talk to Jack about his challenges and successes. We also look ahead to the future of MijnPIA.

What is PIA and how does it help people to live independently, safely and comfortably at home for longer?

“PIA is a personal interactive assistant that provides care support via the most widely used communication app: WhatsApp. PIA sends tips, reminders or questions such as: "Did you sleep well?" or "Have you taken your meds?". This increases the self-reliance of the elderly and people with disabilities and reduces dependence. In addition, PIA supports, informs and relieves informal carers and care providers. It saves costs and is easy to scale up.”

How did you arrive at this solution?

“During the SocialTech Startup Network Series I learned that the introduction of new healthcare technology is often met with resistance due to its unfamiliarity. User acceptance and ease of implementation are crucial to make an immediate impact. Because of this, we decided to develop assistant PIA on WhatsApp! With PIA you don't have to download, log in, update or learn a new app. ”

What were the biggest challenges you faced?

“It was a challenge to get WhatsApp to do exactly what we had in mind, so that PIA can be personalized for 100%. Determining who should be informed at what time when the user answers a certain question also required quite a few development hours. Should this be the son, daughter, the whole family or the district nurse? Fortunately, these challenges have now been fixed.”

What prompted you to participate in the SocialTech Startup Network Series? And how did you experience it?

“Both care organizations and municipalities play an important role in promoting pleasant living at home for longer. Although we have been active in the healthcare sector for some time, we still have limited access to municipalities. We participated in the SocialTech program. This was invaluable to us! I wouldn't have missed it for the world. During the program you meet other start-ups and scale-ups who are experiencing the same challenges. Through networking sessions you make important contacts, including important players within the municipality of The Hague. You also learn a lot about the problems within the social and healthcare domain: how to clarify your proposition and - not entirely unimportant - how to give a convincing pitch for your product in one minute.

What has the collaboration with the municipality of The Hague brought you so far?

“We have received a lot of exposure and new contacts, which has led, among other things, to a contract with an organization for Protected and Assisted Living. Our products can now also be found in the iZi experience home in The Hague and soon also in the Technology for Home Explorer.

In addition, we were pleasantly surprised that Councilor Kavita Parbhudayal during the event 'Meet and discover! Care Technology for Home' explicitly mentioned PIA as her discovery and indicated that it is something for her father. We are currently investigating how PIA can be used even more broadly in The Hague, for example with the Wmo, informal carers, home care, sheltered and assisted living, and day care. In short, plenty of fun work to do!”

Where are you now with PIA?

“PIA is increasingly recognized as a valuable innovation. For example, MijnPia was unanimously chosen as the most promising Dutch innovation at the Online Pitchevent VL-NL 2023, because of the well-known, trusted means of communication and the easy scaling. PIA can be seen in various demo houses for longer living at home in the Netherlands. In addition, PIA also receives attention within portals related to dementia, autism and acquired brain injury. This week we start building a PIA platform for an organization that provides healthcare technology services to many home healthcare organizations in the Netherlands.”

What are the future plans for PIA?

“It is important to enter into more dialogue with municipalities. After all, they have a crucial responsibility to improve the lifestyle and self-reliance of citizens, which leads to a reduction in the demand for care. This is essential to keep the quality of care at a high level. PIA can play an important role in this. For example, municipalities can support citizens financially when taking out a PIA subscription. In 2023, we also want PIA to send messages based on sensor data. For example, we can send a WhatsApp message to encourage someone to eat and drink when the sensor indicates that the fridge has not been opened all morning.”

What's the best advice you've ever received?

"Less is more! When you promote a product, you tend to mention all possible uses and benefits. As a result, potential buyers do not easily identify with the product and find it more suitable for someone else, another department or organization.”

Is there anything else you would like to share with other startups/starting entrepreneurs in The Hague with a healthcare innovation?

“Care innovations are essential for the sustainability of our care. However, it is important to realize that the market is very complex and that human logic does not always apply due to the way everything within the social and care domain is financed. Follow your dreams, but keep a critical eye on the fit between your product and the market.”

Want to know more about MyPIA? View on MijnPia.nl