Digital health technologies, broadly defined, are hardware and software integrations used in the practice of medicine, as well as in day-to-day life as an adjunct to general health lifestyles. These can range from wearables and apps to monitoring and record-keeping systems. The evolution of digital health technologies represents one of the most exciting opportunities in healthcare for patients, doctors, investors and ordinary people looking to optimize their own lives.
Why Invest In Digital Health Tools? A Look At Our Portfolio
With COVID-19 as the impetus for change, the business of healthcare has had to adapt to changing realities. Traditional relationships were altered overnight as doctors increasingly saw non-emergency patients remotely and medical practices of all sizes and types shifted to virtual offices.
001 Ventures believes that the ultimate purpose of digital health technologies should be to generate value for patients and providers by facilitating better care, either directly or indirectly, and that this current trend represents the chance to reimagine solutions for new and ongoing challenges in health administration. That’s why we’re backing a range of service providers offering new tools to clinicians and medical entrepreneurs at every level.
Our portfolio of digital health technologies includes positions in software providers Cortico and Module MD, both designed to streamline the day-to-day operations of medical practices. The combination of reducing costs while enhancing both clinician and patient experience is driving adoptions across North America. While patient needs should always be directly overseen by caregivers, aspects of medical practice such as billing and record-keeping can be sourced to other providers, freeing up more time for doctors and clinical staff to provide necessary care.
Studies indicated that, pre-pandemic, doctors could spend an inordinate amount of time filling in paperwork, updating patient files and generally engaging in administrative tasks that required them to spend time beyond the scope of caring for patients within their work hours. One study published in 2016 indicated that doctors spent an average of 27% of their workday with patients. This is to say nothing of such tasks cutting into their home lives.
Encouraging Greater Efficiency For Clinics & Service Providers
Likewise, our investment in digital health facilitator Locke Bio is a recognition that the space has now expanded to the point where lessons can be learned from the field of e-commerce. Standardized tools to implement digital infrastructure, can aid entrepreneurs in establishing their businesses and further expedite the development of better healthcare solutions.
“Despite the popularity and massive growth of healthcare DTC opportunities, each DTC brand still has to build most of their infrastructure from scratch,” Locke Bio CEO Cathy Tie previously told BetaKit. “This includes customized web applications, condition-specific patient intake forms, payment processing, and partnerships with supply chain partners.”
Our Vision For Digital Health Technologies
While automation and technology are the obvious answers for improved efficiency, a certain degree of caution is required. Maintaining medical records is a matter of trust, with serious implications if they are mishandled. Likewise, poorly executed billing and office administration practices can prove disastrous for operators. In the end, practitioners, administrators and patients would all suffer.
As much as we embrace technology, 001 believes that business tools for digital health should serve as an adjunct to the crucial relationship between physicians and patients, giving both parties more time together to address medical issues, either virtually or in-person.
