Health IT, Startups

Health IT solution to help mental health providers monitor patient outcomes raising $500K

A health IT company commercializing technology for mental health professionals developed at University of Washington […]

A health IT company commercializing technology for mental health professionals developed at University of Washington appears to be raising a $500,000 series A, according to a recently filed U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission document.

The company, Mental Health Data Services, markets OwlOutcomes, a software-as-a-service solution that mental health providers use to monitor patient outcomes over time. It instantly scores, graphs and compares data to national norms when they’re available through the platform’s digital library of assessment measures, according to the company’s website.

It was founded by the director of the University of Washington’s Psychological Services and Training Center, Corey Fagan, and a UW computer specialist, Jon Hauser. According to the company’s website, Fagan wanted to train students using evidence-based assessments but was frustrated with the available technology, or lack thereof, for tracking and comparing patients’ measures over time. Hauser offered to build a solution, and seven years later, in 2011, OwlOutcomes emerged. The duo won initial funding through a $50,000 grant from Washington’s Technology Gap Innovation Fund in 2009.

Clinicians at Seattle Children’s Hospital, UCLA and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro beta tested the technology, according to the website. It appears to be market-ready or already in use, but Fagan could not be reached by email for more information.

OwlOutcomes says that the field of mental health lags behind other health disciplines in use of evidence-based assessment and practice. It’s also been slow to adopt other forms of technology like EHRs, although payers, providers and companies are working to bring technology into the practice of behavioral health via telemedicine.

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, health plans offered through state exchanges must cover mental health services. Some have speculated that an increased demand for those services is stimulating investor interest in the market.

[Photo Credit: BigStock Photos]

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