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A cloud-based company that uses clinical and business data to help medical labs, pharmacies, physicians and health systems track the business relationships they have with one another has raised its second round of financing in seven months. It is part of a two pronged approach by HC1 to expand its business. It is also working with health systems, using clinical and business data to improve patient support.
It raised $14.4 million in March. In its latest fundraise, it attracted $13.2 million from established investors as well as a $5 million revolving line of credit from Greenwich-based SCM Specialty Finance Opportunities Fund, an affiliate of CNH Finance, according to a company statement.
In an interview with HC1 CEO Brad Bostic earlier this month at the Health 2.0 conference, he talked about growth targets for the business.
“We have been able to build a world-leading platform that is scalable and that can ingest data. Now it is a matter of growing our customer base through direct sales and strategic partnerships,” Bostic said. “We look for investors that are adding a lot more value than financial investment.”
Its business model is structured so that customers pay in a way that’s aligned to how much they use its product. Part of its growth strategy involves adding more sales and marketing staff to help it double its revenue in the next 12 months.
One area where Bostic sees an opportunity for growth is in the diagnostic space, where he noted it has a “huge business.” In the future it could work with partners, using its software to help discover therapeutics. He also sees potential for its platform to be used to identify specimen errors.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Bostic also drew attention to ways it can improve a health system’s engagement with patients. If, say, a patient misses an appointment, its software prompts users to identify why, such as a lack of transportation, so they can address that problem to avoid future missed appointments. It is part of what Bostic sees as the Amazon effect — the ability of a company to recall and summon a customer’s preferences. He thinks it can be applied to healthcare too, so that hospitals and other customers can keep track of patients’ specific needs.
“If the Amazon effect can cross industry boundaries, why not healthcare?”
Asked for an example of some of the technology companies it is collaborating with, Bostic identified IBM Watson. It is working with them on tools to generate insights about patients so health systems can better anticipate their needs.
Bostic added that with an eye to bundled payments regulations set to take effect starting next year, its platform is well suited to doing the kind of multiparty communication follow-up that will be required to ensure each of the care teams from a hospital to a skilled nursing facility can keep up with patient’s treatment and recovery.
Photo: Flickr user Peasap
