At the moment’s panorama of diabetes care is fraught with challenges: it’s a situation that’s typically misunderstood by each sufferers and the healthcare system, extremely prevalent, financially burdensome and ceaselessly mismanaged. To discover a brand new paradigm in addressing these points, we’re talking with Chun Yong, the founder and CEO of Reach7 Diabetes Studios. Chun, a biomedical engineer from Georgia Tech with expertise as a UX strategist at Coca-Cola, is making use of his distinctive experience to “reimagine how on a regular basis People entry care” for power situations by means of Reach7’s membership-based, concierge medical clinic mannequin. This mannequin’s focus makes use of hands-on teaching, vitamin, and complete power illness administration.
On this Q&A, Yong discusses the essential misunderstandings about diabetes and the way prolonged specialist wait occasions are. This impressed Reach7’s strategy to redefine entry to specialty care, and the intricacies of their high-frequency, high-touch mannequin designed for the each day realities of these residing with diabetes.
Diabetes is a prevalent power illness that’s extremely misunderstood, costly and really mismanaged. Are you able to elaborate on what you see as the most important misunderstandings about diabetes from each a affected person perspective and from that of the normal healthcare system?
Reach7 Studios CEO Chun Yong: For sufferers: Some of the widespread misunderstandings is that if you happen to don’t “really feel” your diabetes, it should not be severe. However diabetes can silently progress—till it immediately doesn’t. Many sufferers find yourself within the ER with preventable problems like DKA, imaginative and prescient loss or neuropathy [that could have been diagnosed early on].
For the system: It’s much less about misunderstanding and extra a couple of structural mismatch between how care is delivered and what diabetes really requires. Conventional care fashions aren’t designed for each day, proactive engagement. With temporary, rare visits and restricted entry to specialists, sufferers miss out on the time, training and consistency they should handle their situation.
The larger fallacy? Assuming diabetes will be handled with a single, one-size-fits-all protocol. Every individual is completely different—clinically, personally and socioeconomically. Particularly for these with kind 2 or prediabetes, the answer isn’t simply medicine, however habits change and each day help. Most methods merely aren’t constructed to offer that. That’s the hole—and the chance.
In right this moment’s healthcare system, entry to specialists is a big downside, with wait occasions for endocrinologists being 6–12 months. How did these particular entry challenges instantly form the conception and mission of Reach7 Diabetes Studios?
Chun Yong: The nationwide scarcity of endocrinologists—and the 6–12 month wait occasions—was a transparent sign that one thing wanted to vary. Demand for diabetes and metabolic care is rising, however provide [of resources] is shrinking.
At Reach7, we didn’t construct a workaround. We redefined what entry to specialty care seems like. We’ve expanded the care staff past conventional endocrinologists. We prepare nurse practitioners, dietitians and well being coaches to ship depth-level care utilizing scientific protocols, resolution help and real-time information.
With this mannequin, there’s no waitlist. Care is quick, native and steady. And with AI and distant monitoring layered in, we’re in a position to intervene early and personalize therapy. This isn’t a workaround—it’s a reimagined care mannequin constructed for scale.
Managing diabetes is a multi-faceted illness that requires fixed, around-the-clock care. How is the Reach7 mannequin basically designed to help this journey otherwise?
Chun Yong: Diabetes doesn’t clock out and in—it’s with you day by day. That’s why we constructed a high-frequency, high-touch mannequin of care. Members have common, proactive contact with our staff, each in-person and nearly.
Whether or not they should regulate a drugs, interpret a blood sugar studying, or simply discuss by means of a troublesome day—they know they will attain somebody who is aware of their story. We monitor key biometrics and intervene earlier than points escalate.
Our job is to align care with the each day rhythm of diabetes. To not drop in as soon as 1 / 4 and hope for the most effective.
Reach7 is described as a “membership-based, concierge medical clinic.” Stroll us by means of the standard affected person journey and the way you outline the affected person expertise.
Chun Yong: It begins with a free screening and heat welcome. Lots of our staff members dwell with diabetes themselves, so empathy is constructed into the interplay mechanically.
Our studios are designed to really feel restorative, not scientific. Appointments are by no means rushed. We don’t double-book. We take time to know every affected person’s distinctive story.
What units us aside isn’t simply heat—it’s operationalized belief and consistency. Sufferers have ongoing entry to distant monitoring, real-time help and customized steering. Even after well being objectives are met, we stay concerned to forestall setbacks [increase in A1C, etc].
The membership for Reach7 Diabetes Studios is $299/month for limitless entry. What does this cowl and the way do you handle affordability considerations?
Chun Yong: We name it our Complete Care Bundle, and it consists of:
- Limitless in-person and digital visits (30-31 days)
- Biometric monitoring (glucose, BP, weight)
- Labs
- Diet & meal planning
- Grocery excursions
- Similar-day prescriptions
- Behavioral teaching
We benchmarked this in opposition to concierge major care and mockingly, many insured sufferers pay greater than $299/month in premiums, deductibles and copays—and nonetheless get poor entry and worse outcomes.
For sufferers who need assistance, our REACH7 CARES initiative supplies donor-funded care. It’s equity-aligned, not simply donor-supported.
The clinic is situated close to grocery shops and gymnasiums. What’s the pondering behind this retail-centric strategy?
Chun Yong: We selected high-visibility, community-centered places for a purpose. It’s about behavior loops, comfort and emotional security.
Sufferers see us as a part of each day life—not as a indifferent medical establishment. Once they store for groceries, decide up drugs or work out, we’re proper there.
We additionally combine training into these areas—like retailer excursions to construct vitamin abilities. It’s care is built-in into each day life, not siloed from it.
Reach7 members report sturdy medical outcomes. What’s driving these outcomes?
Chun Yong: Our care mannequin is designed to supply repeatable, system-driven outcomes—not remoted success tales.
We test in typically. We regulate early. We construct belief. Sufferers don’t simply obtain care—they take part in it. That’s how we see a median 2.3% A1C drop, 43-point discount in blood strain readings and 21 lbs common in weight reduction.
These aren’t remoted outcomes—they’re the predictable end result of a care mannequin constructed for progress.
How do you outline and measure “affected person expertise” at Reach7 Diabetes Studios?
Chun Yong: Expertise isn’t simply tradition—it’s an operational system. We rent for empathy, prepare for consistency and observe expertise by means of suggestions instruments.
We measure NPS, retention and post-visit surveys. We reply to each piece of suggestions in real-time. Our purpose is to take care of a constant 5-star commonplace throughout each location, go to and staff member.
What’s your strategy to recruiting and coaching compassionate suppliers at Reach7 Studios?
Chun Yong: We search for community-rooted leaders who wish to repair what’s damaged. Each staff member has a pathway to possession—not simply employment.
Coaching is ongoing and grounded in each scientific rigor and emotional intelligence. Lots of our workers have lived expertise with diabetes, making their motivation private.
Compassion is our working system—and it drives efficiency, not simply morale.
Any closing ideas?
Chun Yong: Diabetes care is overdue for a radical shift—and Reach7 Studios is that shift. We mix scientific excellence with empathetic care and cutting-edge expertise.
We’ve confirmed the mannequin. Now we’re scaling—with the urgency this disaster calls for. Serving to sufferers attain a 7 in A1C, or decrease, is the purpose. Thus the start of Reach7 Diabetes Studios.
About Chun Yong
Chun Yong is the founder and CEO of Reach7 Diabetes Studios, a daring new mannequin delivering hands-on teaching, vitamin and power illness administration by means of studio-based care designed for dignity and outcomes. A nationally acknowledged biomedical engineer from Georgia Tech and former UX strategist at Coca-Cola, Chun blends scientific rigor with shopper design sensibility to reimagine how on a regular basis People entry care. Reach7 is flipping the script on power illness—bringing high-touch, high-trust help to the locations folks already go, by means of neighborhood studios co-located with main grocers and different retailers.
