Kanchufang

Kanchufang, more widely known as Xingren Doctor (杏仁医生), was established in 2014 as a dedicated platform for physicians in China, focusing on enhancing doctor-patient relationships post-diagnosis.

The company was founded by Dr. Martin Shen (马丁) and Xu Lin (徐琳). Dr. Shen, an Australian-Chinese doctor with over fifteen years in the medical field, brought extensive clinical, hospital management, and health IT experience to the venture. His co-founder, Xu Lin, possessed a complementary fifteen-year background in the internet industry, having been instrumental in creating several major products at Tencent. Their collaboration was born from personal family experiences with the healthcare system, motivating them to leverage mobile internet to address systemic issues like physician overload and strained doctor-patient communication in China. Before Xingren Doctor, they first created a patient community platform called "Kanchufang," but realizing that empowering doctors was the critical entry point, they pivoted to the doctor-centric model.

Xingren Doctor's core product is a mobile application designed as a professional communication and management tool for physicians. It enables doctors to build and maintain relationships with their patients after an in-person consultation. Patients can connect with their doctor by scanning a unique QR code, facilitating follow-up care through text and phone consultations while protecting the doctor's privacy with features like anonymized calls. The business model initially centered on providing these specialized communication tools to doctors, fostering a sticky ecosystem. By mid-2015, the platform had secured a significant Series B funding of 200 million RMB, led by FountainVest Partners, with participation from earlier investors like Sequoia China and Lightspeed China Partners. This capital injection was aimed at product innovation and market expansion.

A significant milestone occurred in August 2018 when Xingren Doctor merged with Tencent-backed Trusted Doctors (企鹅医生). The new entity, named Penguin Almond (企鹅杏仁), combined Xingren's robust doctor network and patient management tools with Tencent's powerful platform and resources. This strategic merger created a comprehensive online-to-offline healthcare service, integrating Xingren's existing network of nearly 430,000 doctors with an expanding network of physical clinics for multi-site practice and day surgeries. Following the merger, Dr. Martin Shen became president, and Xu Lin took the role of COO. By 2020, the merged entity managed over 100 clinics and provided corporate health management services, including on-site clinics and digital health solutions. In 2022, co-founder Xu Lin and other original team members embarked on a new venture, "Yicong Health" (医从健康), focusing on digital solutions for pharmaceutical companies.

Keywords: digital health, physician tools, patient management, telehealth, online-to-offline healthcare, health IT, medical communication, clinical solutions, China healthcare, Penguin Almond