Atlanta-based medical technology startup SynsorMed wants to help patients receive better health care without having to leave their home.
Founded in 2014, SynsorMed provides a remote patient monitoring platform for people who suffer chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The company works with physicians to help them manage their patients' care at home.
“We provide AI-powered devices as well as a mobile solution that’s delivered to patients at home,” said Theo Harvey, SynsorMed co-founder and CEO. “[SynsorMed] helps monitor their physiological conditions to better understand their behavior, educates them on their health condition and helps them change their behavior for the better.”
SynsorMed works directly with health clinicians to distribute their platform and devices, which include blood pressure cuffs, scales and glucose meters. Patients without access to a smartphone might also receive a tablet that allows them to access the company’s app. The app helps them set up their medical device and walks them through a daily health regimen.
Harvey and his co-founder, Amin Holmes, were motivated to launch SynsorMed after they both had family members who suffered from chronic conditions, and found themselves taking regular trips to the hospital and doctor’s office.
“We thought, ‘There has to be a way to make this more effective, make patients more engaged at home … because they’re not having to worry about getting to their doctor,’” Harvey said.
“The big issue with chronic conditions is they never go away, they can only be managed,” he added. “The way to manage them effectively is to change the behavior for healthier habit over time.”
Starting out, SynsorMed encountered challenges finding ways for health care systems or insurers to pay for its platform, so the burden wouldn’t fall on patients.
“When we first started a lot of this wasn’t reimbursable,” Harvey said. “Telehealth solutions were around but it was hard for patients to get reimbursed for it, unless they were in certain rural settings. But over the years the reimbursement has expanded tremendously. That’s accelerated our businesses.”
Now, Harvey said, most patients have no out-of-pocket expense for SynsorMed, although some pay a co-pay.
SynsorMed employs five employees out of its headquarters in Atlanta Harvey said. The company raised $100,000 in a seed round in 2015. Thanks to a recent investment from Alabama Futures Fund, the company will be moving its headquarters and expanding around the Birmingham area. Harvey wouldn’t disclose the amount of the investment.
Moving forward, Harvey wants to broaden the insight provided by his platform to include non-medical variables that impact a person’s health. That includes “integrating social determinants on health and looking at those non-medical factors that are driving some health care decisions,” Harvey said. “So, lack of transportation, lack of health food options, housing — how do you compensate for those non-medical needs?”
