Dr. Yogesh Shingane shares how TheraTreat is using AI to simplify therapy and rehabilitation journeys for patients, therapists, and clinics.
In India, therapy and rehabilitation are still highly underserved despite growing awareness around wellness and preventive healthcare. Many patients struggle to understand which therapy they need, therapists lack digital infrastructure tailored to long-term care journeys, and clinics continue relying on outdated manual systems.
To address these gaps, Dr. Yogesh Shingane built TheraTreat- an AI-powered therapy and rehabilitation ecosystem designed specifically for therapists, patients, and clinics.
In this conversation with Jirizmi Business Consulting, Dr. Yogesh shares his journey from being an occupational therapist to building a therapy-focused AI platform, the challenges in rehabilitation care today, and his long-term vision for creating a global therapy ecosystem.
Key Takeaways
- Current focus markets include Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, and Delhi, with global expansion plans ahead.
TheraTreat is an AI-powered ecosystem built specifically for therapy and rehabilitation workflows. - The platform supports patients, therapists, clinics, students, and educators.Thera AI combines LLMs with therapy-specific knowledge graphs and rehabilitation rules.
- The company is currently piloting its AI system with strong clinical guardrails.
- Major gaps in therapy today include low awareness, fragmented care journeys, poor therapist infrastructure, and a lack of patient tracking.
- TheraTreat aims to simplify therapy discovery, recovery tracking, and long-term rehabilitation management.
- The startup follows a hybrid business model combining consultations and AI subscriptions.
Founder Journey & Inspiration
Interviewer:
Can you tell us about your background and what led you to build TheraTreat?
Dr. Yogesh:
I’m an occupational therapist by profession, and I’ve now transitioned to building technology full-time. I founded TheraTreat, powered by Thera AI, after observing major gaps in therapy and rehabilitation services in India.
I noticed three major pain points.
First, patients often don’t know:
- Which therapy is right for them
- Which therapist should they consult
- How long will the recovery take
- What kind of therapy journey should they expect
Unlike regular doctor consultations that may last 10–15 minutes, therapy journeys can continue for months or even years. Patients lacked clarity and guidance throughout this process.
Second, therapists themselves don’t have dedicated digital tools built specifically for therapy workflows. Existing healthcare platforms are mostly doctor-centric and don’t support long-term therapy tracking, home care sessions, or rehabilitation workflows properly.
Third, therapy clinics in India still rely heavily on PDFs, Word documents, paper records, and manual processes. Managing patient data becomes very difficult for them.
That’s where the idea of TheraTreat came from- to build a complete ecosystem specifically for therapy and rehabilitation professionals.
Understanding TheraTreat
Interviewer:
What exactly is TheraTreat?
Dr. Yogesh:
TheraTreat is an AI-powered therapeutic platform designed only for therapy and rehabilitation professionals like:
- Physiotherapists
- Occupational therapists
- Speech therapists
- Psychologists
- Counselors
The platform supports:
- Teleconsultations
- Home therapy sessions
- Patient tracking
- AI-assisted recovery guidance
- Voice-based documentation tools
- Therapy-focused educational content
- Therapy equipment marketplace
We built the platform keeping all stakeholders in mind: patients, therapists, and clinics.
AI in Therapy & Rehabilitation
Interviewer:
How does Thera AI help patients?
Dr. Yogesh:
For patients, the platform begins with self-understanding.
We created AI-powered self-assessment tests where users can better understand therapy pathways and whether professional consultation may help.
For example:
- If someone has anxiety
- Back pain
- ADHD-related symptoms
- Behavioral concerns in children
The AI guides them through structured self-assessments and suggests:
- Which therapist they may need
- What kind of recovery timeline to expect
- Whether the issue appears mild, moderate, or severe
The idea is not to replace diagnosis but to educate and guide patients early.
The AI also provides:
- Daily guidance
- Recovery tracking
- Follow-up reminders
- Preventive suggestions
- Home care instructions
Interviewer:
How is your AI different from generic AI tools like ChatGPT?
Dr. Yogesh:
Today, many people ask platforms like ChatGPT about their pain, symptoms, or conditions. But generic AI tools provide broad internet-based answers.
Thera AI is different because it is specifically built around therapy and rehabilitation pathways.
The system is grounded in:
- Therapy knowledge
- Recovery workflows
- Rehabilitation plans
- Clinical reasoning structures
We do use LLMs for knowledge grounding, but Thera AI is designed specifically around therapy and rehabilitation workflows, with structured guidance and strong clinical guardrails.
We are building specialized AI systems designed specifically for therapy and rehabilitation use cases.
So if a patient asks:
“Give me a 5-day recovery plan for back pain.”
The system is designed to provide more structured and therapy-focused guidance than general-purpose AI tools.
Interviewer:
Is the platform already live?
Dr. Yogesh:
Yes, the teleconsultation and therapy booking platform is already live.
Therapists can:
- Register themselves
- Accept online consultations
- Conduct therapy sessions
- Offer home visits
Patients can browse therapists and book sessions.
However, the AI layer is currently under pilot testing because healthcare requires very strong safeguards and validation.
We are testing:
- Response quality
- Accuracy
- Safety guardrails
- Therapy recommendations
- Clinical relevance
before fully scaling the AI system.
Interviewer:
How did you build the AI knowledge graph?
Dr. Yogesh:
The knowledge graph has been built using:
- My own experience as an occupational therapist
- Inputs from psychologists
- Physiotherapists
- Speech therapists
- Publicly available therapeutic knowledge
- Clinical frameworks already used in practice
The platform continues improving through ongoing therapist feedback, validation, and structured clinical workflows.
We focus strongly on transparency, structured guidance, and safety in how therapy-related information is presented.
Therapy Awareness & Industry Challenges
Interviewer:
What are the biggest gaps in therapy and rehabilitation access today?
Dr. Yogesh:
Therapy and rehabilitation are growing rapidly in India, but awareness is still limited, especially in tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
Many people still misunderstand therapies like physiotherapy and think of them simply as massage services.
Compared to countries like:
- United States
- United Kingdom
- Middle Eastern countries
India still lacks widespread awareness around:
- Therapy benefits
- Rehabilitation pathways
- Different therapy specializations
- Long-term care importance
Another major issue is therapist burnout and poor compensation. Many young therapists leave the field entirely because they are underpaid and unsupported.
I’ve personally experienced these struggles and validated them with many therapists across my professional network.
Interviewer:
How are you educating users about therapy?
Dr. Yogesh:
One of our major initiatives is Thera Learn.
It is designed as a therapy-focused educational space where people can learn:
- What therapy actually is
- How rehabilitation works
- Patient recovery stories
- Therapy awareness
- Wellness education
Most educational content will remain free for users.
We especially want to improve awareness in tier 2 and tier 3 cities where therapy understanding is still very limited.
Patient Experience & Care Journey
Interviewer:
What problems do patients face before they even reach the right therapist?
Dr. Yogesh:
Patients often go through a very fragmented journey.
For example, parents suspecting ADHD in their child may:
- Visit a pediatrician
- Get referred to psychologists
- Undergo hearing tests
- Visit speech therapists
- Finally reach occupational therapy
This entire process can take months.
With TheraTreat:
- Parents can begin with structured behavioral screening tools and educational guidance
- AI helps identify possible concerns
- The system recommends relevant therapists directly
- Therapists can then continue care using structured tracking tools
The goal is to reduce confusion and shorten the time required to begin therapy.
Interviewer:
Can you explain the patient journey on TheraTreat?
Dr. Yogesh:
If a parent suspects ADHD symptoms in their child, they can interact with Thera AI through chat.
The AI may recommend:
- A self-assessment
- Behavioral observations
- Relevant therapy categories
After completing the assessment, parents receive a dashboard showing:
- general guidance indicators
- Suggested next steps
- Recommended therapists
The system then connects them with:
- Psychologists
- Occupational therapists
- Speech therapists
depending on the child’s needs.
After therapy sessions:
- Session summaries are stored
- Home instructions are shared
- Progress tracking becomes visible
- Recovery analytics help families understand improvements
Interviewer:
How do you maintain the accuracy of your screening questions?
Dr. Yogesh:
Our assessments are educational tools, not diagnostic medical devices.
The questions were developed using:
- Existing therapy assessment frameworks
- Clinical symptom understanding
- Therapist expertise
- Publicly available therapy knowledge
The purpose is to educate users and guide them toward professional consultation, not to provide a final diagnosis.
For example:
- ADHD symptoms
- Behavioral indicators
- Therapy suitability
- Differential symptom patterns
are all mapped carefully to avoid misleading guidance.
Building a Full Rehabilitation Ecosystem
Interviewer:
Why did you choose to build a full ecosystem instead of just a marketplace?
Dr. Yogesh:
Because therapy is not a one-time interaction.
A doctor consultation may take 15 minutes.
But therapy involves:
- Follow-ups
- Long recovery timelines
- Home exercises
- Progress tracking
- Caregiver involvement
- Rehabilitation plans
Some therapy journeys continue for:
- 6 months
- 2 years
- Or even lifelong
So we wanted to build a complete support ecosystem instead of just another booking platform.
Interviewer:
What does Thera Store offer?
Dr. Yogesh:
Thera Store focuses specifically on therapy and rehabilitation equipment.
Examples include:
- Therapy balls
- Therapy bands
- Balance boards
- Pediatric therapy swings
- Rehabilitation tools
We are partnering with vendors who already manufacture therapy-focused equipment but currently lack strong online visibility.
Data Privacy, Onboarding & Patient Engagement
Interviewer:
How are you handling patient data privacy and trust?
Dr. Yogesh:
Healthcare data is highly sensitive, so we are following:
- DPDP Act compliance
- HIPAA considerations
- GDPR-related practices
We use:
- Secure encrypted cloud infrastructure
- End-to-end encryption
- User-controlled data deletion
- Minimal storage for highly sensitive interactions
Patients can access, manage, or delete their data whenever they want.
Interviewer:
What has been the biggest challenge in onboarding users?
Dr. Yogesh:
The biggest challenge is education.
Since this type of AI-assisted therapy workflows and digital rehabilitation tools is new, many therapists and users initially struggle to understand:
- How the platform works
- How AI helps therapy
- How tracking tools function
- How long-term rehabilitation workflows can be digitized
To solve this, we conduct onboarding calls and explain every feature personally to therapists joining the platform.
Interviewer:
How do you keep patients engaged after the first consultation?
Dr. Yogesh:
Therapy requires continuity.
We provide:
- Recovery tracking
- AI-based monitoring
- Notifications
- Caregiver reminders
- Follow-up guidance
- Home instructions
Patients can also subscribe to AI-powered long-term care tools that help them understand their ongoing recovery journey.
Business Model & User Ecosystem
Interviewer:
What is your business model?
Dr. Yogesh:
The platform follows a hybrid model.
Basic onboarding is free for:
- Patients
- Therapists
- Clinics
Revenue mainly comes from:
- Consultation fees
- Long-term AI subscriptions
- Therapy support tools
If users only want consultations, they can use the platform without AI subscriptions.
But advanced tracking and advanced recovery support and tracking features are available under subscription plans.
Interviewer:
Who are the main users on the platform?
Dr. Yogesh:
We currently serve:
- Patients
- Therapists
- Clinics
- Students and instructors through Thera Learn
Thera Learn will also support:
- Workshops
- Certification courses
- Webinars
- Therapy education sessions
Partnerships & Expansion Plans
Interviewer:
Are you collaborating with colleges and universities?
Dr. Yogesh:
Yes.
We are already in discussions with therapy colleges and institutions for:
- Validation partnerships
- Educational collaborations
- AI testing
- Research support
Students and Gen Z users are particularly enthusiastic about using AI-driven wellness and therapy tools.
Interviewer:
Which cities are your primary focus markets?
Dr. Yogesh:
Currently, we are focusing on:
- Mumbai
- Pune
- Bangalore
- Delhi
Mumbai has one of the strongest therapy ecosystems in India, which makes it an important market for us.
We are also planning expansion into:
- Singapore
- United Arab Emirates
- Southeast Asian markets
Vision for the Future
Interviewer:
What is your long-term vision for TheraTreat?
Dr. Yogesh:
Our vision is to become a globally accessible therapy and rehabilitation support platform.
Whenever someone anywhere in the world begins their therapy journey, we want TheraTreat to become the first layer of support they access.
Final Words
Dr. Yogesh Shingane’s vision for TheraTreat goes beyond simply digitizing therapy bookings. He is attempting to build a structured, AI-assisted rehabilitation ecosystem that empowers both patients and therapists across the entire care journey.
At a time when wellness, preventive care, and personalized healthcare are becoming increasingly important, platforms like TheraTreat reflect how AI can potentially bridge gaps in accessibility, continuity, and therapy awareness especially in emerging healthcare ecosystems like India.
With therapy still under-recognized across large parts of the country, TheraTreat’s combination of education, guided recovery, and therapist-focused infrastructure could play an important role in shaping the future of rehabilitation care.
Note: TheraTreat does not replace professional medical diagnosis or clinical judgment. The platform is designed to support education, therapy navigation, and rehabilitation workflows.