Exploring Life & Business with Dr. Brandy Archie of AskSAMIE

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Brandy Archie.

Hi Dr. Archie, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always been interested in entrepreneurship but I didn’t always know that was what I was doing. But when I look back I notice that I’ve been filling community needs for a long time from selling ink pens in middle school to charging admission to my backyard pool to neighborhood kids in the summertime! So when I recognized that the healthcare system is broken I felt I could make a difference in my little part. Everywhere I worked as an occupational therapist I kept running into the same problem: inability to connect the dots to get people the equipment they needed, installed, and set up in a timely manner. That resulted in falls, re-hospitalizations, or them moving from their home to assisted living if they were financially able. Too many of our seniors feel forced to leave their homes as they age because their abilities have changed and their adult children worry they can’t live on their own. But independence in American culture is paramount. We just need to make their home environment work for their needs! This doesn’t happen often because health insurance will not pay for it, but our specialty is finding solutions that are affordable and attainable. Since I found no way to solve it consistently within the system I created AccessAble Living. We send an OT to the home to evaluate the needs, create a prioritized list of solutions, and then deliver the right adaptive equipment.

This year we realized that this model can’t meet the needs in a big enough way. For example, we can’t reach people in rural communities and the process of scheduling an assessment and then waiting for the equipment is too slow if someone is getting out of the hospital tomorrow. So we’ve developed AskSAMIE, a curated marketplace to make aging in place possible for anyone! Answer some questions about the problems the person is having and then we build you a personalized cart of adaptive equipment and resources so that things can be as easy as possible at home! It’s intentionally designed to be easy for anyone with knowledge of the problems to use, from a family caregiver to a healthcare professional. Going through the questions gets them equipment to purchase, services to connect with, and education to download to make daily life easier. We’re a one-stop shop for all things accessibility and that includes solutions not just for limited mobility but for issues with incontinence, memory, and low vision!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Finding ways to be profitable, sustainable, and scaleable. It took a lot of trial and error but being open to changing how I thought the business would run at the outset and continuing to stay creative helped us create the business model that we have today!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about AskSAMIE?
An explained video on AskSAMIE – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT6pLwuQjoI

We are changing the way we do healthcare and rehabilitation because the system is broken! AskSAMIE is taking a bottom-up approach to change by giving everyone the information and tools needed to age in place! Too many older adults feel forced to leave their homes as they age because their abilities have changed. We don’t need to build more institutions that many of our most vulnerable cannot afford. We just need to make their home accessible! It seems simple but currently, it does not happen because health insurance will not pay for it. So there is no pathway through their healthcare providers for getting a ramp or knowing what and where to get equipment to modify a bathroom. But AskSAMIE uses simple questions to determine solutions tailored to that individual’s deficits and their environmental constraints; solutions that are both affordable and attainable – quickly.

There are so many innovative tools, equipment, and strategies already developed but individuals don’t have a way of knowing whether these solutions exist right when they need them and whether it is clinically appropriate for them. And while we believe equipment to modify the home can solve a lot of problems we know it doesn’t meet all needs. So within the app users are also provided resources and are connected to services that are also needed to truly make aging in place attainable.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out.
If you have an idea or you see a need in the world then you are the person to solve it! Get started and own that space and that idea. The best time to start a business was yesterday! So today is the 2nd best time. Once you’ve got your idea and you are taking action on it start talking about it! With AccessAble Living, I was so concerned about providing the best service and experience to my clients that I took almost a year to ‘perfect’ the model and my tools before I told anyone about it.

So once I did feel ready to officially say our doors were open for business there was no one there to serve. Then it took more time to get the word out and ramp up referrals. So with AskSAMIE I’ve done the opposite and started talking about it even when it was barely an idea. That helped me hone in on how I wanted it to work by using the feedback I was receiving from others as well as making some valuable connections in the community and with other business owners. So start today and get your idea out there.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.asksamie.com