Meet Patrick Fynn, a medical practitioner and a writer, who has interests in the various sectors of the economy. Be inspired by his story.
Tell us a bit about your self ?
My name is Patrick Fynn. I’m a medical practitioner and writer with interest in health, social, political and inspirational topics among others. I lead a clinical team at StandOut Care to provide public health screening services. I’m a fellow of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), West Africa.
I’m brand ambassador for the National Student Awards (NSA Ghana), Dignity Diner and UrbRide.
What stimulated your interest in entrepreneurship and why did you choose this particular work?
My inspiration for entrepreneurship has been born out of the zeal to make the most of the things I’m passionate about, prospects that I have committed time to develop for myself. I see it as an opportunity to create enterprises out of what I can do best. I have always had an intrinsic motivation to find solutions to problems as an individual or together with others.
In my work as a medic I have seen people either lose their lives or the quality of it as a result of diseases they simply could have nipped in the bud.
So I thought to myself “If people won’t see a doctor because the hospital is not readily accessible or too expensive, then why not take it to them in the most affordable way?”
What are some of the services you provide? Any memorable project (s) so far?
At StandOut Care we run a mobile clinic and a community-based health screening program
We do but not limited to:
Public Health Education
Weighing and BMI Check
Blood Pressure Check
Blood Sugar Estimation
Rapid Diagnostic tests for Malaria
Hepatitis B
General consultation
Mass deworming
Breast cancer screening
HIV/AIDS Voluntary Counselling and Testing .
We have provided services for market squares, churches, schools, clubs, communities in the Greater Accra, Ashanti, Central and Volta Regions.
What are some of the untapped places you think your project could be deployed in?
There are people outside the cities, far away in the hinterlands who we’re very much concerned about. These deprived areas need our services the most.
Do you think entrepreneurship is the solution to some of the problems on the continent?
If we can retain economic dominance, our best shot is to aggressively promote entrepreneurship in order to bolster idea innovation, productivity and job creation. That is how best a lot of our challenges as Africans can be solved.
What is your vision for the next 5 years and where do you see yourself as an African entrepreneur?
In 5 years I want to be the most authoritative, most productive healthcare professional to have impacted at least 1 million Africans.
What would you say is your biggest challenge as an African entrepreneur and why have you not
given up?
The system is infertile and not supportive of what we have to offer. I believe that the general make-up of our system doesn’t support start-ups. The basic rudiments such as business registration, mentorship, incubation, skill development are not readily available.
What gets you out of bed in the morning and what keeps you up at night?
The thought that there’s a task to start or finish.
How did you fund your business and how difficult was it?
The start-up was ran primarily on personal funds. I had to run extra shifts, do short-term investments with my salaries and that was how I was able to procure logistics and medical supplies.
Along the way, we had a few sponsorships from pharmaceutical companies.
What avenues can upcoming entrepreneurs on the African continent think of with respect to funding?
Funding has been the greatest challenge for most businesses. I’m not a financial expert or authority, but I believe strongly that start-ups can best best support themselves through self-funding. It’s easier to get external support when operations look promising and sustainability can be assured.
What do you wish you knew before starting your first business?
I wish I knew that I didn’t need to wait for a particular time before starting the business.
Waiting kills ideas and suppresses drive!
In one word describe your life as an entrepreneur.
Life-changing
What has been your greatest inspiration?
Achievements and failures.
I’m result oriented. When one success is clogged, it inspires me to do more.
When I fail, I motivate myself with the finish line in sight.
A lot of prospective change makers are waiting for a certain status, capital, or enablement to start a venture. However, no time is ever the most appropriate moment to put an idea to action.
Each second spent “preparing” would rather be channelled into starting and learning from the mistakes. The time is NOW!
