About INDUASE CORP

INDUASE Corp, a U.S. based company, was established as a ‘consulting services’ company in 1997 focused on the Personal Lines insurance industry in Latin America.   Since then, the company has had an important evolution, transforming itself into a group of companies fully integrated and focused on providing ‘turn-key’ solutions in the mass-market arena throughout the globe including North America, Central America, South America, the Middle East and Asia, with risk backing from some of the most important reinsurance companies in the world.  

Today INDUASE is a group of companies providing two main mass-market products; International Second Medical Opinion (SMO) and Long-term Care (LTC), to insurances companies, banks, afinity groups, healthcare providers, credit card companies and others.  INDUASE provides complete reinsurance support for the LTC product line, working with some of the most important reinsurance companies operating in these markets. 

Long-Term Care Solutions

Through its company LTC Solutions, INDUASE offers the ‘Long-Term Care’ (Extended Care) insurance product, covering the risk of a ‘chronic disability’ which leaves the insured without the ability to carry-out some of the ‘activities of daily living’ without direct assistance from someone else. This product is offered with first class reinsurance backing and includes support in the assessment and handling of claims.
The product was developed and introduced in Latin America in 2001 through a joint venture between INDUASE and Avon Long-Term Care Leaders, the largest LTC company in the U.S.A. at that time. Marketing studies were completed in various markets in the region including Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Argentina, and the product designed for mass-market distribution was born.

Houston InterMedical Consultants

Founded in 1993 by a group of doctors in the city of Houston, Texas, USA, ‘Houston Inter-Medical Consultants’ (HIMC/Houston) began their Second Medical Opinion Service initially as an ‘external medical audit’ service, a requirement of Reinsurers backing various types of Major Medical and other Health Insurance products sold in markets in Latin America and later, in the Middle East, Asia and Europe.

As Client Companies saw the quality of the evaluations and the benefit of these ‘remote’(provided without the need to have the insured present) second medical opinions, they wanted to use the opinion as a ‘value-added’ benefit to their Insureds as well and in multiple lines-of-business, not just health insurance.
Today all types of Client Companies throughout the world use Houston’s Second Medical Opinion service in both concepts; as a value-added benefit and as a medical audit for health related business. Houston’s Clients today include insurance companies, reinsurance companies, healthcare providers, banks and other financial institutions, credit card companies, corporate clients, affinity groups, cooperatives, among others.
Houston adopted a ‘per capita’ cost model instead of a ‘pay as you go’ service from day one, which has enabled all types of populations and businesses to offer this high value quality service to their insured/clients at a very low cost, helping provide peace of mind to their insured/clients at a difficult time in their lives control their population’s health care costs. The cost of the service is determined based on the number of insured/affiliates that will come under cover at a given point in time, or over a specified period. As the insured group reaches and exceeds certain volume thresholds, the cost for the service decreases.

Who is HIMC?

Since its beginning, HIMC has dedicated itself to working with medical professionals around the world, through the sharing of medical expertise and knowledge of the latest treatment options available, to help resolve complex medical questions and provide the patient with the knowledge to manage his/her medical condition or illness. Understanding the importance of obtaining a second medical opinion for any case to assure a complete perspective on the case, is the basis of HIMC’s mission. This is not a case of ‘questioning’ the knowledge of a medical professional, but instead providing him/her additional support, tools and expertise to maximize the patient’s possibility of survival and/or quality of life.
The ‘Second Medical Opinion’ (SMO) service is provided as a value-added benefit to clients of various types of companies and organizations; insurance and reinsurance companies, affinity groups, credit card companies and banks, and any other organization or company looking to increase its market share and client retention. It matters not the individual’s economic level or where they live — they can rest assured that they can count with the expertise of world-class medical specialists when they or their family need it most.

Our Team

A group of medical professionals who strive to stay up to date in their respective field of medicine, and who are ready to respond immediately, working with other world-class specialists and medical professionals in the city of Houston and around the United States of America, to support the needs of clients around the world.

Our Physician Associates

HIMC contracts an independent specialist to evaluate each case. The specialist is selected depending on the characteristics of the case and based on the doctor’s specialization and expertise in the given pathology. Depending on the specifics of a given case, one or several HIMC ‘associated’ doctors team up with the external specialist, to provide the international medical consultation service. ‘Medical Panel Evaluations’ may also be conducted if the case warrants a review from a panel of specialists with different specialties and experience. In certain situations, a case may be referred to a specialist outside of Houston, in other top medical institutions in the United States. The city of Houston has long been recognized as one of the most important centers for medical research an innovation in the world. For this reason, HIMC has focused on creating a base of medical specialists of all types of pathologies and working in some of the most renowned medical centers and hospitals in the city of Houston as well as throughout the United States.

Our Success Stories

WHY IS A SECOND MEDICAL OPINION IMPORTANT?

‘Alejandra’ is a 38-year-old woman diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s, low-grade Lymphoma. Her Oncologist determines that the best course of action to treat the disease is a daily dose of a chemotherapy medication taken orally that, due to its low dosage, has minimum side effects and will keep this slow growing cancer at bay for a period. After several weeks of receiving this treatment, there is no sign of improvement and her symptoms worsen. She seeks out a second opinion of her case on her own, this time from a renowned specialist in Lymphoma whose name she obtained after doing extensive research on her own. Her persistence pays off — this second medical evaluation results in a completely different diagnosis. She is suffering from a high-grade, mix-cell, and very aggressive form of the cancer. Her chances of reaching a two-year survival are very slim if she does not undergo an aggressive regimen of chemotherapy which includes intravenous application of high doses of multiple drugs on a weekly basis —- continuing for a total treatment period of one year. The side effects of the treatment are intense, including extreme nausea, the loss of hair, paralysis of the face, blisters in the mouth, etc., …. But the great news is that she is still alive and healthy 12 years later thanks to this second medical opinion that resulted in a corrected diagnosis and the application of the appropriate treatment for her specific condition…If you were in Alejandra’s situation what would you do? Do you wonder if your diagnosis of a life and death condition is correct and/or is the treatment prescribed your best option for survival? Would you know where to get answers and could you afford to pursue getting them? Of the dozens of procedures and treatments available or recently developed around the globe, which one would best give you a chance at life?

The following are examples of real cases of how a Second Medical Opinion from Houston was instrumental in the prolong health and care of our clients.

‘Samantha’ was a 4-year-old girl, daughter of the Life Manager for an insurance company in Ecuador who provided Houston’s International Second Medical Opinion service to their life insureds as a value-added benefit. One afternoon while in pre-school, Samantha collapsed and was rushed to the hospital. After several days of evaluation she was diagnosed was a Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma in the brain stem and was scheduled for surgery the following week. Her mother, aware of the second medical opinion service provided by HIMC although not being covered under the program, called Houston and requested a second opinion on her daughter’s case before she underwent surgery the following Monday. This was a Friday afternoon. Samantha’s case was evaluated over the weekend by two specialists in Houston who provided an opinion on the diagnosis and the most appropriate course of treatment for the young girl. The initial suggestion from the specialists after conferring with the treating physicians in Quito, was to hold off on the surgery until additional tests were performed. Upon receiving the results of these tests, a modified surgery plan was designed and was executed on Wednesday, with excellent results. The tumor was completely resected, and it was recommended that an additional treatment composed of chemotherapy be given the child. Chemotherapy was given in lieu of radiation therapy since she was still very young, and thus avoid damage to her developing brain. The child is doing well six months after the surgery however the parents have been diligent in follow-up with the medical team after treatment, including the specialists in Houston.

‘Esperanza’ prepared to have open heart surgery several years ago. Her physicians in Bogota, where she lived, had told her that surgery was absolutely necessary in order to repair her heart, which had a prolapsed mitral valve. So she requested a second medical opinion which was available to her as a value-added benefit through her bank credit card. Esperanza received some surprising news. Pre-operative tests suggested by a Houston cardiovascular specialist and performed in Colombia, indicated that surgery was not necessary at that point. With her treating physician at her side, She spoke to the specialist who explained the situation. “What he said was, ‘We are not talking about replacing a car tire; we are talking about your heart,’” Esperanza relays. “Then he spoke to both of us, ‘I strongly suggest that you do not go ahead with the surgery at this time and take a wait and see posture. The surgery should not be performed until and unless this becomes a real problem.’ The heart specialists recommended an echocardiogram and a heart catheterization which had not been considered by her then treating physician. These tests showed that the surgery was not yet needed, despite the urgency indicated by her physician, who had insisted it was time for mitral valve repair. The Houston cardiologist told Esperanza that she did not need to have her heart’s mitral valve repaired immediately. They said that the problem should be regularly monitored during routine checkups and that she should watch for certain signs and symptoms that could indicate the necessity of surgery. “The doctor gave me parameters I needed to know so that I could tell when surgery might be needed,” she says. “It was so comforting to have someone at the caliber of these Houston specialists tell me that if my body does this, then you need that. I don’t have that level of confidence with my local doctors.”
“I began crying,” she adds. “When you build up to heart surgery and then are told you do not need it, it’s a big relief. Dad had triple bypass surgery and a mitral valve repair and he feels the same way I do about it. We will never have surgery or any major medical procedure or course of treatment unless we have received a second or even a third opinion from an independent specialist. A second opinion very clearly can save your life – and you only have one!”

Mariya was incapacitated by severe pain and swelling in her leg. Doctors first diagnosed an ankle contusion, then tendonitis – but despite treatment there was little improvement. Unable to perform everyday activities or pursue her passion for sports, she became frustrated with her doctors’ lack of answers. The constant waiting and uncertainty was taking its toll, not only on Mary, but on her family and friends as well. Finally, Mariya’s doctors arrived at the tentative diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Sadly, the delay left her with irreparable damage to her leg. Many of her questions still unanswered, Mary turned to HIMC for a Second Opinion. Written by a team of Harvard-affiliated physicians at Massachusetts General Hospital specializing in cardiovascular issues and blood disorders, Mariya’s Second Opinion contained the necessary expertise to get her health back on track and restore her confidence after multiple misdiagnoses. She was impressed by how straightforward and knowledgeable the Second Opinion specialists were: “To have a top expert in North America look at your case is very reassuring. That was really important to me, to know that they were well respected in their field by their colleagues and their peers. Thanks to this Second Opinion, Mariya now has the reassurance and answers she needs to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. Today, Mariya is back doing the activities she enjoys and living life to the fullest. “To have your confidence back and to know that you’re being cared for properly and that you’re on the right track to recovery is something. The Second Opinion eased my mind and gave me assurance that my case was handled properly, and I was able to sleep at night again.”

‘John’ had already undergone one operation earlier in his life to remove a benign brain cyst. Although he knew he would need brain surgery again someday, he was surprised that it was so soon. Adding to the uncertainty and stress of the situation, John learned from his family doctor that he would have to wait two years before being able to see a neurosurgeon in his area. Unsure whether he had two years to wait, John chose to be proactive about his health –he decided to get a Second Opinion. John contacted Houston and they walked him through the process, working with him to gather his medical records, including imaging from his MRI clinic, to have his case examined by a top U.S. neurosurgeon at no additional cost to him. A few days later, John received his Second Opinion that confirmed the initial diagnosis as well as the surgery. He underwent an operation to remove the cyst again, but this time confident he was making the right decision. Today, John is back to riding his bike and running. He credits the Second Opinion with providing him with peace of mind by answering his questions sooner than otherwise would have been possible: “Having a second opinion can mean everything to somebody who’s faced with a serious medical surgery or medical condition. Your health is all you have.”

Ana, 46, had visited doctors several times with different symptoms which were believed by her Primary Physician as unrelated. However, when she developed a blood clot in her right eye and he could not provide her a clear explanation as to why she got this, she decided to approach a doctor friend at Houston InterMedical (HIMC) in Houston who took on her case, working with specialists in different disciplines to diagnose the bases of her illness. Ana had also begun to experience tightening across her shoulders and shortness of breath and was beginning to get palpitations. Through HIMC, she was put under the care of a team of doctors including a heart specialist who found a mild swelling of the aorta. Shortly thereafter she began to get headaches and dizzy spells, then suffered a stroke affecting the left side of her face. She was finally diagnosed with a left anterior fossa meningioma cavernous sinus, a benign tumor which in her case was the size of a kiwi fruit.
The tumor was successfully removed with an eight-hour operation and now Ana is symptom free and living a normal life. “I’m so happy that I made the decision not to sit around and wait for my doctor to act and looked for a second opinion from an independent source. I am so pleased with the specialists who were recommended by HIMC since they saved my life; it’s fantastic”.