MIDAS Healthcare Solutions Inc. has raised $2 million from the new investment arm of Cleveland-based MCPC Inc., the manager of endpoints — smartphones, tablets, laptops — in clients' business networks.
MIDAS Healthcare, also based in Cleveland, is developing products that secure, track and dispose of controlled drugs, such as opioids, in health-care settings.
Jeffrey Wahl, the health-care startup's co-founder and president, said in an email the investment is "significant" because it is expected to accelerate the development of MIDAS Healthcare's software-based, visual-accountability system that ensures controlled substances are properly handled and disposed of.
Called Verified Institutional Environment for Wasting (V.I.E.W.), the system uses software, high-acuity cameras and video queues to eliminate human error, preventing controlled-substance mishandling and misappropriation, and avoiding unreasonable reliance on the "honor system" for medication handling.
MIDAS Healthcare plans to use the investment to expand its product-development efforts in preparation for rollout next year, Wahl said.
MIDAS — which stands for Medication Integrity Diversion Accountability System — was founded in 2017 by Michael LaFauci, a New York pharmacist, medical-device developer and serial entrepreneur who now is the company's CEO.
LaFauci invented the Patch Catcher — a cylindrical device that "catches," encapsulates and chemically neutralizes transdermal fentanyl patches to reduce accidental exposure to patches that are discarded, Wahl said.
The Patch Catcher was designed by Cleveland product design firm Nottingham Spirk, Wahl said.
The recent investment from MCPC Healthcare Investment LLC, the new investment arm of MCPC, also is significant because it makes MCPC the largest non-executive shareholder of MIDAS, he said.
MCPC is an information-technology company that helps businesses manage the security risks and logistical challenges in their fleets of technology assets.
"This collaboration is a win-win for MIDAS and MCPC and will catalyze substantial growth for both companies, said Mike Trebilcock, MCPC's founder and CEO, in a statement.
