Trust – is a strong yet delicate emotion. As long as it takes to get built, it takes less than half of that time for it to turn fragile.
Therefore, an obvious question to individuals as well as organizations is, “what builds trust and how can one maintain it throughout?”
Answering this, the research literature suggests that trust gets built by ethics and leadership qualities imbibed by the leader of the organization along with other attributes of honesty, psychological safety, respect, and others.
This component of trust gets very important in the healthcare niche where a patient puts his life entirely into the hands of the doctor. And especially at the first level of diagnosis, which is done by medical and clinical Laboratories whose accurate results help the doctor to arrive at a reliable solution, strengthening the trust.
Paying utmost attention to this value is Savannah’s P23 Labs, which is focused on improving the relationship and trust between the healthcare system and minority groups, who have historically been mistreated and misrepresented throughout medical history.
This trust has been multiplied by the pivotal role played by the laboratory’s leaders – its Medical Director – Dr. Bernadette M. Mandes-Wildemore, MD, and CEO, Dr. Tiffany Montgomery, whose passion for helping and serving the underserved has placed the laboratory among the most trusted in the industry.
Without further ado, let’s go through their journey in the following interview:
Please brief our audience about your organization. Kindly tell us the source of inspiration for starting a medical and clinical laboratory.
P23 Labs is a Black-owned high complexity molecular diagnostic laboratory headquartered in Savannah, GA.
We were born from a drive to improve the relationship and trust between the healthcare system and minority groups, who have historically been mistreated and misrepresented throughout medical history. We have 3 clinical labs operating in Savannah, GA, Hilton Head, SC, and Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.
P23 Labs offers a full suite of molecular diagnostic tests that also include COVID-19, respiratory pathogen profiles, and other infectious diseases rapidly identified via our state-of-the-art molecular methods.
Since opening, we have processed over 1.2million tests and served high-profile clients across the country. The tests are primarily focused on the individual, with many of them based on the person’s DNA and the RNA of the targeted infectious disease. P23 Labs employ methods like PCR, Mass Array, Genetic Sequencing, and ELISA to provide the best available, state-of-the-art actionable results. This allows educating and empowering patients and partnering with providers for the best outcomes.
Brief us about the featured person and shed some light on their journey in the medical product and development niche.
Our laboratory medical director is Dr. Bernadette M. Mandes-Wildemore, MD, and our CEO is Dr. Tiffany Montgomery, Ph.D. Dr. Montgomery completed population health and disease doctoral studies in Honduras, which cultured her love of helping the underserved. She has a Master of Public Health and Bachelor of Science from US-based and accredited schools.
Tell us more about the services that make your organization stand out from the competition.
When it comes to competition, the majority of our competitors provide laboratory testing for doctor surgeries, hospitals, etc. We are putting control in the hands of our patients and providing access to health testing outside of their healthcare plans. Whether they are looking for information on their genetic makeup, testing for infectious disease, or other health-related issues, we can work with them. We are also helping employers provide access to health testing to their employees beyond COVID-19 tests. We work with large corporations to provide Safe-ID testing – to prevent common illnesses from spreading rapidly through groups who work closely together.
What is the current scenario of the medical product development and testing industry?
The medical product development and testing industry is seeing huge growth. As the world becomes more connected, we are seeing developments in the way of physical health applications, better quality data communication, and ultra-tailored preventative measures. P23 recognizes these trends and is all-in when it comes to personalized, preventative health care.
What is your opinion on healthcare providers’ aligning their offerings with newer technological developments, especially when it comes to catering to the dynamic needs of the healthcare space?
As healthcare providers, you have to adapt to what the market needs. Today it isn’t one-size-fits-all, and we are seeing more and more that our customers want to be in control of their health and wellness. We started as a molecular diagnostics laboratory, and while we continue to see great success in that area, we recognize the needs of our market and ever-evolving industry. It has allowed us to analyze and diversify our product offerings to meet the needs we are seeing in the healthcare space.
What advice would you like to give to the budding entrepreneurs and enthusiasts aspiring to venture into the medical industry that you are catering to?
There’s enough room for all of us. We’re lucky to be in a growing industry, with estimated market size of over $800bn ($10trillion globally). Find your niche and chase your dreams. We’re in the business of helping people live their healthiest, longest life, and if you are too, we think that’s amazing (and would love to collaborate).
How do you envision scaling your organization’s services and operations in 2022 and beyond?
Scaling our business and operations is definitely a balance between our vision, customer demand, and market forecasting. We have big ambitions for P23, and we are lucky to have a team that will work with us to get there. We see a need for health and fitness backed by science, which is why we have launched our P23 Health Membership program. It is split into 4 different programs, the benefits of each progressing with the price point.
Give us a few testimonials from your clients and awards or recognition that accurately highlight your organization’s position in the market.
“The premier customer service! They always go above and beyond.”
“We were of the first to contract P23s COVID-19 testing solution over a year ago. P23, Dr. Montgomery and her amazing team have relentlessly served our clients that are very demanding and require white glove services with expedited testing needs. P23 did a great job.”
“We have worked with P23 from the beginning of the pandemic. We have worked in the trenches late into the night to enable PCR testing for our mutual clients, and P23 has provided a great service to us and our consumer clients.”
“The customer service was amazing. I felt very comfortable. I was in and out, fast testing and results.”
“The company is amazing. My test results came back right away, and the customer service was outstanding. Will always use this company.”
In addition to building trust and providing world class services, is there anything else you think sets P23 Labs apart from the competition?
We have actively engaged in philanthropic endeavors to care for POCI groups, including diagnostic testing for COVID-19 for those who struggled to gain reliable access to testing, as well as making generous contributions to Black-owned grassroots charities.
