Strategic Partnerships
New Consortium Aims to Ensure Responsible Use of AI in Healthcare
A new initiative, the Trustworthy & Responsible AI Network (TRAIN), was announced at the HIMSS 2024 Global Health Conference. Through collaboration, TRAIN members will help improve the quality, safety, and trustworthiness of AI in health by sharing best practices, enabling registration of AI used for clinical care or clinical operations, providing tools to enable measurement of outcomes associated with the implementation of AI, and facilitating the development of a federated national AI outcomes registry for organizations to share amongst themselves.
Lilly Partners with Amazon Pharmacy to Deliver GLP-1 Medications Directly to Patients
Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) and Amazon Pharmacy announced a strategic collaboration to improve patient access to GLP-1 medications for diabetes, obesity, and migraines. Through LillyDirect, a platform connecting patients with healthcare providers and pharmacies, patients can now receive select Lilly medications delivered directly to their homes via Amazon Pharmacy. This partnership offers several benefits:
GE HealthCare, Mass General Brigham Integrate AI Medical Imaging Foundation Models
GE HealthCare and Mass General Brigham, longstanding partners in artificial intelligence (AI) research, have announced a new initiative focused on integrating medical imaging foundation models into their work. This collaboration prioritizes responsible AI practices while aiming to revolutionize healthcare through more efficient workflows and improved diagnoses.
Philips, AWS Partner to Scale Digital Pathology in the Cloud
Royal Philips expands collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to address the growing need for secure, scalable digital pathology solutions in the cloud.The partnership between Philips and AWS combines Philips’ expertise in digitizing pathology with AWS’ leadership in scalable, secure cloud solutions. This collaboration aims to streamline clinical workflows by advancing digital pathology, empowering pathology labs to efficiently handle, organize, and analyze expanding amounts of digital pathology data. By simplifying the adoption of digital workflows, the partnership also strives to improve productivity and diagnostic precision within pathology labs.
Verato, Google Cloud Partner to Tackle Healthcare’s Identity Data Crisis
Verato, the identity experts for healthcare announced its partnership with Google Cloud to accelerate healthcare organizations’ ability to transform their businesses with an end-to-end, trusted enterprise identity data management solution – solving the problem that drives everything else – knowing who who is. Through this strategic partnership, Verato’s purpose-built-for-healthcare Master Data Management (hMDM) and Google Cloud’s enterprise-grade solutions that leverage the company’s cutting-edge technologies of BigQuery, Healthcare Data Engine, Healthcare API, and Vertex AI will be available at every touchpoint across the patient journey, enabling healthcare organizations to power cloud transformation, digital engagement, clinical interoperability, and provider data integrity initiatives.
Velatura DocuSign Partner on Pilot Project to Streamline Patient Consent
Velatura, a health information exchange (HIE), and DocuSign, the e-signature giant, have joined forces to launch a pilot project aimed at simplifying the way patients consent to share their medical information. The pilot project will begin rolling out to select Velatura network providers this spring, focusing initially on specific Michigan State behavioral health consent forms and general patient consent forms.
Sunoh.ai Integrates AI Medical Scribe with Epic EHR to Reduce Physician Burnout
Sunoh.ai, a leading provider of AI-powered ambient listening technology for healthcare, announced its successful integration with Epic’s open interoperability platform, fhir.epic.com. The integration enables doctors using Epic EHR to leverage Sunoh’s capabilities to streamline clinical documentation and improve patient care. Providers using Epic®’s EHR system can search and request Sunoh.ai app on fhir.epic.com
Northwell Forms 3-Year Partnership with Playbook Health
Playback Health, a healthcare technology company forms a three-year strategic integration partnership with Northwell Health, the largest health system in New York state. The partnership focuses on integrating Playback Health’s innovative clinical communication platform with Northwell Health’s dedication to exceptional patient care. A key component of this initiative is the introduction of Playback Health’s latest AI-powered feature, Notes. Notes utilize artificial intelligence to optimize how healthcare providers capture, manage, and share vital patient information.
WebEx Integrates with Deep Medical and SpinSci
Webex announces partnerships with Deep Medical and SpinSci Technologies to improve patient outcomes through Webex Connect. Deep Medical is bringing AI-driven personalization capabilities to the Webex Connect platform. Using its advanced AI algorithm, Deep Medical is revolutionizing patient engagement by analyzing hundreds of human behavior insights to predict and preemptively alleviate patient no-shows. SpinSci Technologies integrates with Webex Connect to enhance digital patient engagement and deliver better healthcare interactions through an integrated AI-enhanced patient-centric engagement platform across the entire care journey. From pre-visit preparation to post-visit follow-up, pre-packaged intelligent workflow orchestration and digital channel orchestration enable an end-to-end connected experience across the patient journey for care coordination.
hellocare Brings Alexa to Hospitals: Voice-Controlled Care for a More Comfortable Recovery
Virtual healthcare platform hellocare announced a groundbreaking integration with Alexa for Healthcare. The integration partnership allows hospitals and clinics using hellocare’s platform to offer patients voice-controlled access to a variety of features through Alexa-enabled Hello 2 devices.
Implementation/Deployments
Stanford Deploys Nuance AI-Powered Clinical Documentation to Reduce Physician Burnout
– Stanford Health Care, a leader in medical innovation, is deploying Nuance Dragon® Ambient eXperience™ (DAX™) Copilot to streamline clinical documentation and improve patient care. The AI-powered clinical documentation solution automates the creation of clinical summaries during patient exams, freeing up physicians’ time and reducing administrative burdens.
AI Assistant Reduces Clinician Burnout at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles
Nabla, a company specializing in AI assistants for doctors, announced a partnership with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) to implement their Nabla Copilot tool. This follows a successful pilot program and aims to improve efficiency for CHLA’s pediatric specialists. Nabla Copilot will be tailored to the specific needs of a children’s hospital setting. CHLA is a leading hospital performing a high volume of surgeries and patient visits annually.
Johns Hopkins Deploys Transpara Breast AI for Cancer Detection
Johns Hopkins implements ScreenPoint Medical’s Transpara Breast AI to improve breast cancer detection for their patients. Transpara assists radiologists in analyzing mammograms (2D & 3D) to potentially find cancers earlier and reduce unnecessary follow-up appointments. This implementation expands Transpara’s reach in the Northeast, now serving over 50 sites across 5 states and D.C. Transpara is FDA-approved and widely used by leading medical centers worldwide.
Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) Transactions
Innovaccer Acquires Pharmacy Quality Solutions to Bolster Value-Based Care Initiatives
Innovaccer, a healthcare IT company, announced the acquisition of Pharmacy Quality Solutions (PQS), a leader in Pharmacy-Payer performance technology. By leveraging PQS’s strengths, Innovaccer is poised to play a leading role in shaping the future of value-based care and medication management within the healthcare landscape.
Linus Health Acquires Clinical-Grade Speech Platform Aural Analytics
Linus Health, a leader in early detection of Alzheimer’s and dementia acquires Aural Analytics, a company specializing in clinical-grade speech analysis technology. Aural Analytics’ speech analytics platform provides objective, repeatable metrics—unlocking a new paradigm of patient care. The strategic move strengthens Linus Health’s position in the fight against cognitive decline by adding a powerful new tool to its assessment platform.
Mahana Acquires Cara Care to Expand into Europe Market
Mahana Therapeutics, a provider of digital chronic condition management programs acquires Cara Care, a Berlin-based company specializing in digital digestive healthcare. The acquisition of Cara Care is expected to accelerate Mahana’s market entry in Europe where the reimbursement of digital programs is outpacing the United States. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Access Information Management Acquires Triyam to Bolster Healthcare Data Management Services
Access Information Management (“Access”), a leading provider of integrated information management services acquires Triyam, a rapidly growing healthcare data management software company. By acquiring Triyam, Access leverages its existing expertise in records archiving and compliance management to offer a more comprehensive suite of solutions for healthcare organizations. Triyam, founded in 2012, is a recognized leader in data conversion, migration, and archiving solutions for hospitals, clinics, and provider networks.
Frazier Healthcare Acquires RevSpring to Bolster Payment Solutions in Healthcare
Frazier Healthcare Partners, a leading healthcare investment firm, announced the successful acquisition of RevSpring, a provider of end-to-end communication and payment solutions for healthcare and financial services companies, will join Frazier’s portfolio. The acquisition brings together RevSpring’s established presence in the communication and payment solutions market with Frazier’s deep healthcare expertise and investment capabilities.
Anatomy IT Acquires Manta HealthTech, Expands into Healthcare Sub-Verticals
Anatomy IT, a leading provider of healthcare IT and cybersecurity solutions, announced the acquisition of Manta HealthTech, a healthcare-focused managed IT services firm. The acquisition positions Anatomy IT as a leading force in healthcare IT solutions, offering comprehensive support across diverse healthcare settings. Headquartered in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, Manta HealthTech offers comprehensive IT solutions to medical, dental, optometry, and veterinary care organizations. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Platform Launches & Updates
Google Cloud Unveils New Generative AI Solutions for Healthcare and Life Sciences
At HIMSS24, Google Cloud announced a suite of new generative AI solutions designed to address key challenges faced by healthcare and life sciences organizations. These solutions (Vertex AI Search for Healthcare, Healthcare Data Engine, MedLM) focus on improving interoperability, building a strong data foundation, and deploying generative AI (gen AI) tools to enhance patient outcomes.
Israeli Hospital Develops Generative AI Platform to Improve Mental Healthcare Access
Sheba Medical Center, a leading Israeli hospital, is collaborating with ARC Innovation Center and KPMG to develop a generative AI platform named “Liv” aimed at transforming mental healthcare accessibility. “Liv” is an interactive conversational platform utilizing natural language processing to engage users in a personalized experience. It captures intake sessions through voice and written conversation, adhering to established protocols and guidelines, including the DSM-5 (diagnostic manual for mental disorders). Sheba anticipates a fully operational platform within a few months after thorough testing and safety protocols are established.
MEDITECH Integrates Ambient Listening into Expanse EHR
MEDITECH, a provider of Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems, is taking a significant step towards reducing clinician documentation burden by integrating ambient listening technology into its Expanse EHR platform. The AI solution integrates with existing voice assistant vendors, allowing clinicians to leverage ambient listening during patient encounters. Large language models and natural language processing automatically generate draft clinical visit notes based on the conversation between clinician and patient. Clinicians retain control, with the ability to review, edit, and approve the notes using voice, typing, or macros before finalizing them within the Expanse EHR.
Oracle Rolls Out Enhancements to Health Data Intelligence Platform
Oracle announced enhancements to its healthcare data analysis platform, Oracle Health Data Intelligence. This cloud-based platform helps healthcare providers improve patient care and reduce costs by analyzing data from various sources like electronic health records and insurance claims.
Key improvements include:
- A new generative AI service that summarizes patient history for care managers, saving them time and allowing them to see more patients. (limited availability)
- More pre-built analytics for common healthcare areas, including chronic conditions and childhood wellness.
- Automated alerts within electronic health records to highlight potential care gaps for individual patients.
- Support for new healthcare benchmarks to help providers optimize care and maximize reimbursements.
symplr Unveils symplrAI to Improve Healthcare Operations Efficiency & Productivity
symplr®, a leader in enterprise healthcare operations launches symplrAI, an AI/ML solution to accelerate operational efficiency and productivity gains in healthcare. symplrAI tackles a critical challenge in the healthcare industry: siloed applications. By integrating AI, symplr aims to break down these barriers, ensuring accurate and readily available data for both clinicians and administrators. This empowers healthcare professionals to focus on patient care, while AI handles time-consuming administrative tasks.
Augmedix Go Enhances Efficiency and Accuracy in Medical Documentation with New Data and Product Updates
Augmedix, a provider of AI-powered medical documentation solutions, announced positive data and feature upgrades for its flagship product, Augmedix Go. Augmedix Go seamlessly integrates with leading EHRs, including Epic, Oracle Cerner, Meditech, and athenahealth, allowing for proper organization of previously unstructured documentation into appropriate clinical data domains. Go uses a problem-based note approach, with note content organized within the History of Present Illness (HPI) and Assessment and Plan (A&P) sections of the patient’s chart.
Talkdesk Unveils Talkdesk Autopilot for Healthcare to Modernize Self-Service Experience
Talkdesk, a provider of AI-powered contact centers, announced Talkdesk Autopilot for Healthcare at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Global Health Conference and Exhibition. Built upon the Talkdesk Autopilot platform, this specialized solution integrates seamlessly with Talkdesk Healthcare Experience Cloud™. This cloud-based platform is designed to create a more convenient and personalized experience for healthcare patients, members, and caregivers.
Innovaccer Launches Provider AI Companion & Analytics Suite Upgrade
Innovaccer unveils its new provider AI companion, a unique device that extends the functionality of its comprehensive healthcare AI ecosystem. The Provider AI Companion, a portable AI software and tablet device, supports clinicians and care providers seamlessly. It provides real-time data visualization, access to critical patient information, and AI-generated diagnosis suggestions based on symptoms and medical history. With a high-quality dictation microphone, it effortlessly transcribes physical examinations and virtual visits while accurately understanding medical terminology.
Vivalink Unveils Biometrics Data Platform for Remote Hospital-at-Home Monitoring
Vivalink, a leader in digital healthcare solutions, is transforming patient care with its Biometrics Data Platform. Vivalink’s Biometrics Data Platform offers a comprehensive solution for remote chronic and acute patient monitoring, facilitating seamless hospital-at-home care. With over 300 healthcare and life sciences partners across 51 countries, Vivalink’s Biometrics Data Platform is making a global impact.
Value-Based Cancer Care: Thyme Care Launches TCOPPP to Empower Oncologists
Thyme Care, a leader in value-based cancer care, has launched Thyme Care Oncology Partners (TCOP), a dedicated platform designed to support oncology practices in the transition to value-based care models. Through partnerships with payers and providers, Thyme Care’s TCOP platform fosters collaboration and prioritizes patient-centric care while reducing costs. This innovative approach positions Thyme Care as a leader in shaping the future of value-based cancer care.
AKASA Unveils Gen AI Assistant, Slashes Prior Authorization Time by 50%
AKASA, a leader in generative AI (GenAI) solutions for the revenue cycle, announced the launch of Authorization Advisor™. Authorization Advisor tackles the time-consuming and error-prone process of prior authorization, a major pain point for healthcare providers. With Authorization Advisor, revenue cycle teams can now reduce the time spent on prior authorization by up to 50% and submit more thorough authorizations by finding 15% more relevant clinical documents.
Funding
Zephyr AI Secures $111M to Democratize Precision Medicine with Explainable AI
Zephyr AI, a healthcare technology company pioneering explainable AI (XAI) for precision medicine, raises $111M in Series A round led by Revolution Growth, Eli Lilly & Company, Jeff Skoll, and EPIQ Capital Group. Zephyr AI curates one of the world’s most comprehensive healthcare datasets through partnerships and proprietary data sources. Their AI algorithms are specifically designed to handle the complexities of real-world patient data, a historical challenge in the field. Unlike traditional AI solutions, Zephyr AI’s technology goes beyond predictions. It provides the biological context behind its results, offering crucial insights for drug development and treatment decisions.
CodaMetrix Secures $40M for AI-Driven Medical Coding Solutions
CodaMetrix, a provider of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for healthcare revenue cycle management, has announced the successful closing of its $40 million Series B funding round led by Transformation Capital with participation from existing investors SignalFire, Series A lead, and Frist Cressey Ventures. The Series B funding round will fuel further development of CodaMetrix’s AI-powered platform, designed to streamline medical coding, improve data quality, and ultimately transform healthcare delivery.
HiLabs Secures $39M to Tackle Dirty Healthcare Data with AI
HiLabs, a leading provider of AI-powered solutions to manage dirty data, unlocking its hidden potential for healthcare transformation raises $39M in Series B financing led by Denali Growth Partners and Eight Roads Ventures, with participation from F-Prime Capital. The capital raise follows rapid customer adoption of its healthcare data ingestion, cleansing, and enrichment platform, MCheck™, and will support continued enhancement of the technology as well as recruitment of top-tier talent and expansion of its product teams.
Foundation Health Secures $6M to Power API-based Pharmacy and Telehealth Products
– Foundation Health, a healthcare technology company empowering clients in building and launching modern, digital-first pharmacy and telehealth solutions at scale secures $6M in seed funding. The seed round included participation from Garry Tan (CEO, Y Combinator), Transpose Platform, Tuesday VC, and prominent venture capital firms like Alt Capital, Box Group, and Liquid Ventures. Additionally, angel investors Paul Johnson (Lemonaid) and Meghan Fitzgerald (Grey Ghost Advisors) lend their expertise and support.
Nest Health Raies Over $4M for Whole-Family Healthcare
Nest Health, a pioneering value-based healthcare provider for families, announced the closing of an extended Seed funding round, securing over $4M led by SpringTide, with participation from Alumni Ventures, Ochsner Ventures, and others. Founded in 2021, Nest Health is the first value-based healthcare practice built for families. Nest provides parents and children with convenient and compassionate primary care through house calls, virtual care & 24/7 medical, behavioral, and social support. Since launching, Nest Health’s services have become accessible at no additional cost to thousands of families covered by Medicaid in the greater New Orleans area.
Assort Health Secures $3.5M for Generative AI Solution for Healthcare Call Centers
Assort Health is introducing the first generative AI solution built specifically for healthcare call centers and raises $3.5M in funding. Leveraging AI and NLP (natural language processing), Assort Health adeptly discerns caller intent, seamlessly integrating with medical providers’ electronic health records (EHR), including Epic, to address patient inquiries autonomously. Assort Health’s AI solution handles a spectrum of patient inbound call tasks, ranging from intricate determinations such as directing calls to the appropriate physician and facilitating new patient registrations and appointment scheduling, to more straightforward responsibilities like managing rescheduling, cancellations, and confirmations for established patients.
Research Insights
Nearly 70% of Medicare Patients Open to Telehealth Annual Wellness Visits
Nearly 70% of Medicare patients would be comfortable doing annual wellness visits (AWVs) via telehealth from home, according to the results of a consumer survey by KeyCare, an Epic-based virtual care company. These findings suggest a significant shift in preference among Medicare beneficiaries towards utilizing telehealth for routine healthcare needs. The convenience, safety, and cost-saving aspects of telehealth appear to be particularly appealing for AWVs. Additionally, the comfort level with using new providers highlights the potential for telehealth to expand access to care, especially in areas with physician shortages.
Surescripts Reports Progress in Patient Information Sharing, Highlights Growing Role of Pharmacists in Addressing Primary Care Shortages
Surescripts, a health information network in the US, released its 2023 National Progress Report, detailing positive advancements in patient data sharing and highlighting areas for improvement. The report found a significant increase in patient information exchange, with nearly 24 billion exchanges of clinical and benefit data in 2023. This represents a nearly 10% rise compared to the previous year and underscores the growing focus on interoperability within the healthcare system. A concerning trend identified in the report is the worsening shortage of primary care providers (PCPs). The data reveals that 62.9% of US counties have less than one PCP per 1,500 residents, with 196 counties having none at all.
New Study Shows Promise for Voice-Based Mental Health Monitoring
A new study by Sonde Health reveals vocal biomarkers can be a reliable indicator of mental health. The research, published in Frontiers in Psychiatry, highlights the potential of Sonde’s mental fitness vocal biomarker (MFVB) platform to complement traditional mental health assessments and improve self-monitoring. The four-week study involved 104 outpatients with depression symptoms from the Cognitive Behavior Institute in Pennsylvania. Participants used Sonde’s Mental Fitness app to record 30-second voice entries over a month. The app’s MFVB tool analyzed these recordings for eight key features related to mental health, including pitch and speech rate. Scores ranged from 0-100, with higher scores indicating better mental well-being.
Nursing Report Reveals Generational Divide on Nursing’s Future, Amidst Staffing Shortages
Incredible Health, the leading healthcare career marketplace, released its 5th Annual State of US Nursing Report. The report, based on data from one million nurses and a survey of over 3,300, offers a comprehensive look at the state of nursing in the United States. A staggering 88% of nurses surveyed believe staffing shortages negatively impact patient care. Many nurses (63%) reported being assigned to too many patients, and nearly a quarter (23%) perform tasks outside their job description due to these shortages.