A medical technology startup that launched during the early parts of the Covid-19 pandemic has raised fresh funding as it plots “aggressive” growth for 2023.
Vizabli, based in Mason, is developing a new wave of interactive, touchscreen smartboards for hospitals equipped with its “acute care engagement solution” software.
The company closed a $2.5 million seed funding round in December, led by Dallas-based Lone Star Communications, which develops safety and communications systems for the health care and education industries.
The funding will allow Vizabli to expand its team and execute its “aggressive product roadmap” for 2023, co-founders Rich Schramm and Ron Nelson told me.
Schramm said the goal is to improve clinician safety and time – a big selling point as hospitals continue to face staff shortages and high admit rates.
“This is something totally unique in the industry, nobody else is doing it, and that’s why our investors are so excited and have put money behind this,” Schramm said. “They recognize the need and that what we’re doing is solving a lot of unmet problems.”
Schramm, who serves as chief technology officer, and Nelson, the company's CEO, are both health care and tech industry veterans. They launched Vizabli in the summer 2020, during the early parts of Covid-19. Schramm said they noticed a huge gap in the marketplace.
“There weren’t a lot of options for the family to stay connected and to keep in touch with the patients (during the pandemic),” Nelson said.
As the company worked to address that issue, it saw a lot of other openings in the marketplace.
“People that need the data aren’t getting updated on that data in real time,” he added. “We started with a blank piece of paper — instead of just engaging the patient, we engage the patient, the medical staff and the family. We’re elevating this concept of patient engagement into acute care engagement. And our roadmap is about continuing to push the boundaries.”
The company’s TV-size, 43-inch touchscreen smartboards replace legacy dry-erase boards and offer an array of different functionalities.
The company’s acute care management system works to aggregate data collected from multiple other systems in use – from the electronic medical records, nurse call systems, staff trackers and more. Instead of sitting in separate silos, that information can be displayed in real time on a smartboard in a patient’s room or in a waiting room; on a digital placard, which sits outside the patient’s door; or at a nurses station.
There’s also a mobile app to support it for clinicians, patients and their loved ones – ensuring family and friends are kept up to date on what’s happening during various stages of care.
Using the funding, Vizabli plans to roll out several new features, including integrated artificial intelligence to reduce falls; single-pane-of-glass touchscreen television/smart board devices; and virtual nursing call centers. The company also is working on a capability that will allow for the remote monitoring of a patient’s vitals from home – a way to reduce costly hospital readmissions.
Currently, Vizabli maintains a lean internal team with employees in Ohio, Kentucky, California, Arizona, Texas and India. It plans to add positions.
The company has deployments in Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Florida and is working with more than 43 U.S. health care equipment distributors who have access to the project. Several invested in the seed funding round.
“They immediately see the value,” Nelson said.
The company is performing customer demos on a daily basis and hospitals are shifting from “patient engagement” to “hospital room of the future” projects to include its acute care engagement solution.
Future roll outs could include non-hospital settings, including continuous care/retirement communities, education and industrial spaces.
“We’re overwhelmed with opportunities,” Schramm said.
For Lone Star Communications, the company said it’s also taking the acute care engagement solution to its customers. The company currently provides nurse call, real-time locating systems and more.
It’s leveraging Vizabli’s underlying platform as a foundation to further develop and deliver its offerings.
“We invested in Vizabli because their platform and product is the most innovative and capable technology we have seen in years,” Ray Bailey, owner of Lone Star Communications, said in a statement.
