While businesses across the region, from on-demand services to gig work platforms, are looking to get in on the fight to stop the pandemic spread of the coronavirus, health care startups are uniquely positioned to leverage their technology and innovations.
Now, Plano-based connected care platform for seniors and remote patients VitalTech is joining the action by offering free telehealth access to providers nationwide for the next 60 days, through its VitalCare platform.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to give back because we can accommodate it and it’s a great win-win because people need this and we have it… and I think it’s a great thing to do for the community,” Peter Ianace, VitalTech COO, told NTX Inno.
One of the most important aspects of the CDC’s recommendations to help slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, is social distancing, as it helps reduce person-to-person transmission of the virus. While drive-thru clinics have recently begun to pop up around the Metroplex, the number of patients they are able to handle is relatively low, making telehealth increasingly important.
A number of health care providers in the North Texas region have expanded their adoption of the model, with one local doctor telling NBCDFW the he averages about 50 telehealth patients per day.
“As a provider of Virtual Care innovation, we feel it’s incumbent upon our company at this time to help as best we can,” said James Hamilton, VitalTech CEO, in a prepared statement. “The technology available with the VitalCare platform can help increase the safety of patients and care teams by decreasing the risk of exposure for vulnerable populations.”
VitalTech’s platform allows users to track their daily health data and connect that to health care providers and family. Users can find it on Android and iOS app stores and can begin tracking their data and potential symptoms. In addition, the service will allow physicians to triage care to patients showing the most pressing symptoms.
The launch of the free service is only a part of VitalTech’s technology. However, Ianace said it could be one of the most important for providers at the moment. The launch is part of a partnership between Concord Health Partners, an early investor in VitalTech, and the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) Innovation Development Fund, of which VitalTech is a portfolio company. Due to the partnership, AHA hospitals will have access to the telehealth service free for 90 days.
“We were all literally sitting around the conference table as workers asking how can we help,” said Kelly Miller, VitalTech spokesperson. “We realize how profoundly it's affecting everyone. It was really born out of a desire to help people and give back.”
VitalTech was launched in 2018, closing on an $8 million Series A round last year through Concord and Stanley Ventures, before acquiring Pittsburgh-based senior engagement and compliance platform Breezie.
