May 8, 2017

By Norm Volsky, Director of Mobile HIT

As an executive search consultant in the Healthcare IT space, it is my job to be able to identify emerging technology companies that are poised for significant growth. Since I am specifically focused on Mobile Technology and Telehealth, I have plenty of companies from which to choose. I do research daily and during my discussions with industry thought leaders, I make it a point to ask them what companies in the space they find intriguing and unique. I feel it is my job as a member of this industry to share this knowledge/information with my network so that you could be exposed to these organizations too.

Below are companies I have had my eye on all year that I met with in person at ATA to learn more about their story and vision.

TruClinic- Cloud-based Telemedicine platform that easily connects patients and providers inside their existing workflow. Their hardware agnostic approach enables their customers to launch a telemedicine program with zero capital expense. TruClinic allows patients to schedule appointments and pay bills online to enhance the patient experience. TruClinic is also focused on improving clinician satisfaction and reduce the total cost of healthcare which is perfectly geared towards the value-based care model.  Security of the platform is unparalleled being compliant with: HIPAA, HITECH, COPPA, PIPEDA & SSAE 16-II. Simply put, TruClinic helps increase accessibility to healthcare by providing a consistent patient experience regardless of the modality of care delivery, whether traditional face-to-face or virtual.

Pera Health- Clinical Surveillance solution that identifies at risk patients using predictive modeling and real time vital sign data. The founders created an algorithm called the Rothman index that uses Vital Signs, Lab Results and Nursing Assessments. Pera Health’s solution reduces Alarm Fatigue, the number of False Positives, Code Blues, unplanned ICU transfers and Sepsis Mortality. In January, the company raised $14M in funding. Pera Health helped both Houston Methodist and Yale New Haven to reduce their mortality rate 30% in nine months and twelve months respectively.

Cloudbreak- Originally a remote interpretation service company that was founded 14 years ago. Since then, they have transitioned to not only provide interpretations services in over 200+ languages but to also provide telemedicine capabilities to its over 650+ hospital customers. Cloudbreak facilitates over 70,000 interpretations monthly. This unique platform allows doctors to be able to bring in an interpreter and a specialist anywhere in the world onto a tele-consult with a patient to provide world class care.

Grand Rounds- Enables patients to get World Class second opinions by leveraging telemedicine. They have been able to attract some of the world’s top specialists on the platform by exposing them to the most complex and intellectually stimulating cases.  Grand Rounds helps its customers improve employee/patient satisfaction, reduce absenteeism and improve clinical outcomes by giving their employees/patients access to the top specialists in the country. Grand Rounds now has 50 state coverage and recently just opened their Maine office.

Fitango Health- Care Management and Patient Engagement vendor helping its customers move towards value-based care. Their HIPAA compliant solution enables all the stakeholders to communicate including: Care Managers, Care Givers, Providers, Network Managers, the Patient and their family. Fitango’s approach is preventative in nature and is geared towards the post-acute setting. The goal is to reduce readmissions and improve adherence to the patient’s care plan.

Azalea Health- EHR, PM and RCM vendor that uniquely has telehealth imbedded into the EMR which solves the reimbursement issue. The solution suite includes patient portal and scheduling capabilities. Due to the fact that many of Azalea’s customers are Rural, there was a need for telehealth which gives physicians access to additional patients.

Cohero Health- Chronic Disease Management app focused on Asthma and COPD. Cohero’s mission is to transform respiratory care through smart mobile devices to enable real time monitoring and adherence. By leveraging Cohero’s devices that send patient data via the cloud, Nurses, Pharmacists and Pulmonologists can intervene when necessary when a patient is at risk. The solutions Cohero provides allow the patient and their care team to monitor the use of their inhaler (both daily use and emergency) and test for lung capacity.

Sensely- Developed a nurse avatar powered by AI named Molly that communicates with patients via their mobile device. The disruptive platform was built to improve the patient experience by focusing on empathy and clinical support. All the data collected is sent to the patient’s clinician so they can monitor risk factors and adjust clinical protocol. Sensely raised $8M in series B funding. Sensely already works with the Mayo Clinic and is launching a program with NHS in the UK.

Carena- Carena is a software-based virtual care provider for health systems. Carena started as a primary care house call service in 2000 and has since evolved into a telemedicine company. Carena works with more than 120 hospitals including Ascension, Catholic Health Initiatives, and University of Washington Medicine. They focus on helping health systems get better connected to consumers in their local markets by providing an easy and convenient way to access the health system anytime, anywhere, and navigate cases more appropriate for virtual care out of the ED and urgent care. Carena works with hospitals and health systems to supplement the services they have and resell the virtual care product to employers and health plans—not competing with the health system by taking patients away (like some telemedicine companies do that work with Health Plans and Employers).

Wellpepper- Patient Engagement platform that improves patient satisfaction, clinical outcomes and access. Wellpepper completed a Parkinson’s study at Boston University and the patients saw a 9% increase in mobility compared to a 12% reduction in the control group. They also have research studies with Harvard, Brandeis and UW Medicine. Their CEO, Anne Weiler was asked to speak at ATA on a panel for Tele-rehab for total joint replacement recovery.

Vivify Health- Remote Patient Monitoring Platform helping move the industry toward value-based care. Helping its patients manage their chronic disease, Vivify is one of the leaders in mobile population health management. In 2016, Vivify not only signed UPMC as a customer, but the health system also participated in their recent $17M Series B investment round. Vivify, along with Iron Bow Technologies were awarded a $258M telehealth contract by the VA in 2017.

Avizia- Robust end-to-end telehealth solution suite that connects any doctor to any patient at any time. Avizia as a company has made it their mission to advance healthcare by helping all patients have the ability to get top quality healthcare regardless of their location or situation. In October of 2016, Avizia wrapped up a $18M Series A funding round led by NY Presbyterian and Northwell Health.

Zipnosis- Provides its customer a significant ROI which has been proven to convert 25% of patients from the telemedicine platform to in person customers with an average spend of $3K per year. The providers that were using the Zipnosis platform met guideline adherence up to 95%. Key customers include: Baylor Scott and White, UCLA Health and Mission Health.

Medici- Created WhatsApp for healthcare with an emphasis on user experience. Medici built a business platform for providers to communicate HIPAA compliantly with their patients. While attending SXSW, they had 1500+ app downloads and 17% of people did a consult using the app which is unheard of in the telemedicine space. The text, phone and video capabilities allow for seamless communication, e-prescribing and referrals. Providers can also bill via the app which caters to patients with high deductible plans. Medici is launching in South Africa in May and is looking to expand their international footprint.

I remember going to this show three years ago in Baltimore and I am amazed at how much the industry has moved towards being software focused. The software vendors are definitely trending up as they had the largest and shiniest booths. I always come back amazed at how passionate and innovative this industry is as a whole. All of the companies above are helping drive change towards value based care and I feel so lucky to be able work in this industry every day.

Norm Volsky
Director of Mobile HIT
Direct Recruiters, Inc.
440-996-0059
nv*****@di**************.com