The traditional healthcare model in Brazil follows a well-known logic. Faced with any complaint, even the simplest ones, the patient almost always goes to the hospital. The result is mainly seen in the ever-increasing costs of health insurance plans and, consequently, for companies.
In recent years, however, technology has begun to bring about changes in the sector. The digitization of access to healthcare services, combined with the intelligent use of data, has opened up space for new ways of caring for corporate health. It was in this context that Conexa was born in 2017, today the largest digital ecosystem for physical and mental health in the country.
The company's solutions do, in fact, break away from the traditional model. Instead of acting merely as an intermediary between patients and providers, Conexa operates in corporate health management, anticipating risks and acting before simple health problems progress to more complex – and therefore more expensive – situations.
“For a long time, healthcare was fragmented,” says Guilherme Weigert, CEO of Conexa. “Employees would go to the hospital, then to a cardiologist, seek out a nutritionist on the side, and none of that was connected. We came to change that cycle.”
The proposal caught the attention of global investors such as Goldman Sachs, Vivo Ventures, General Atlantic, and Patria Investimentos, and the funds raised were used for company growth and acquisitions such as Zenklub, a startup specializing in corporate mental health.
Today, Conexa serves more than 35 million beneficiaries and has in its portfolio more than 10,000 companies, 200 health operators and 40 distribution channels – including health cards and flexible benefits platforms – with clients such as Procter & Gamble, Havan, Afya, Klabin, Azul, Positivo, Grupo Uol and Volkswagen.
“Our model doesn’t see the patient as a user of a service, but as someone who needs to be monitored over time,” says Gabriel Garcez, VP of Health at Conexa. It was from this logic that Hospital Conexa was born, the company’s most recent – and most ambitious – venture. “Hospital Conexa functions as a gateway to the entire employee health journey,” states the executive.
The service operates 24 hours a day, accessible via WhatsApp, app, or website. Among other solutions, it offers digital emergency care, family doctor services, specialist consultations, and referrals for tests.
By contracting the service, the company gains access to a dedicated clinical team for its employees, with over 35 specialties in physical and mental health and a network of 6,000 healthcare professionals.
By contracting the service, the company gains access to a dedicated medical team for its employees, with over 35 specialties in physical and mental health and a network of 6,000 healthcare professionals. "We've brought back that old concept of 'my' occupational physician," says the VP. "Only in the digital world."
When the family doctor cannot resolve the case remotely, the patient is referred to a specialist. For simple tests, such as dengue fever tests, Covid tests, or blood pressure checks, they are directed to partner pharmacies or laboratories. With this model, only 2% of cases end up in the emergency room, compared to 6% recorded before the system was adopted.
For the employee, the solution ensures faster access to care and quality of assistance. For the company, it guarantees greater control over costs and claims, with less waste.
Garcez reinforces a central point: the system reduces the excessive use of the emergency room for low-complexity cases, which put pressure on costs without improving patient health.
“Imagine that 85% of the people who go to a physical emergency room are there for low- or medium-complexity complaints and wouldn’t need hospital care,” says the executive. “That’s exactly the space that Hospital Conexa occupies.”
The employee served by Conexa also has access to a healthcare team with nursing professionals and others, who guide the patient's next steps and help with scheduling, placing the employee on a healthcare journey that includes issues such as sleep, stress, and others. For companies with operations spread across the country, this tends to standardize care without the need to maintain medical structures in each unit.
"The trend is for corporate health to increasingly migrate towards integrated models, in which technology and clinical coordination work together to generate real value, both for companies and for employees," emphasizes CEO Guilherme Weigert.
For the employee, the solution ensures faster access to care and quality of assistance. For the company, it guarantees greater control over costs and claims, with less waste.
Conexa states that its clients are registering, on average, a 16% reduction in per capita claims, a 20% decrease in the number of tests performed, and a 6% decrease in hospitalizations.
Garcez also mentions the use of artificial intelligence to identify signs of mental distress and direct employees to specialized care. The same applies to chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension, which can be detected earlier.
Azul, the largest airline in Brazil in terms of cities served, with 137 destinations, demonstrates how effective Conexa's solutions are. With employees distributed throughout the country and varying work schedules, Azul has always had difficulty guaranteeing medical assistance using traditional models.
With Hospital Conexa, employees gained access to care regardless of their location. In March of this year, 75% of elective consultations requested by the company were conducted digitally.
“It’s a consistent evolution in the way we care for our people, with safety, greater access, continuity and quality of care,” says Antonio Dibai, Director of People at the airline.