ONC funds startups for senior mHealth

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced it has awarded a total of $300,000 to six startup companies focused on digital health. The companies and their health system partners will test applications under development in live healthcare settings.

Among the six winners of ONC’s inaugural Market R&D Pilot Challenge, two stand out for applications that could affect the long-term care industry.

physIQ has developed an analytics platform that transforms sensor-generated biodata into clinically meaningful and personalized insights. The solution couples artificial intelligence physiology analytics with disposable wearables that capture and transmit bio-signal data in order to reduce hospital readmissions associated with chronic conditions. The company, in conjunction with the Henry Ford Health System, will evaluate physIQ’s platform’s ability to reduce hospital readmissions for heart failure and COPD patients and quantify changes in outcomes, operational efficiency and ROI.

Vital Care Telehealth Services, developer of the Senior Total Population Assisted Telehealth Services (STATS) program, connects populations of seniors at the community level to preventative care and chronic disease management programs. In conjunction with the Dominican Sisters Family Health Service, the company will test STATS’ efficacy in increasing access to primary and secondary prevention services at the Shinnecock Indian Health Services Clinic located on eastern Long Island, N.Y.