Health IT, Startups

Orb Health and PadInMotion offer two different approaches to engaging patients

Orb Health takes a more physician-driven approach while PadInMotion's platform is driven by patients.

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Orb Health, a digital health startup based in Phoenix, has raised $3.2 million, a company news release said. The funding will be used to expand its platform to improve the way physicians communicate with patients and provide practice management software for physician practices and health systems.

Mt Vernon Investments led the Series A round with participation from investment firm Green Park & Golf Ventures along with seed investors that previously backed the fund. Orb Health, which graduated from Health Wildcatters, raised $650,000 last year.

Orb Health also has a chronic care management component. Its technology integrates electronic medical records and data from wearables, patient engagement tools, deep healthcare information.

In response to questions, Orb Health CEO Paul Oran offered an update on the company’s progress. Last year, the company launched a portal initially focused on patient engagement.

“Since then the platform has since expanded and matured into a fully reimbursable collaborative care platform for both physician-owned practices and health systems, while leveraging our powerful patient engagement experience to drive outcomes and patient satisfaction. 2016 marks our entry into the fast-growing chronic care management space. We have also added clinical services including registered nurses as a part of our solution that can serve as an extension for” providers’ practices.

Orb Health’s approach on the patient engagement front is physician driven but it dovetails in some ways with PadInMotion’s approach. The New York-based digital health business developed a way to encourage patient engagement through an interactive app that helps patients track goals, communicate with healthcare professionals and make them more aware of the impact of the healthcare choices they make.

This week PadInMotion, which is currently taking part in the Dreamit’s latest cohort and also graduated from Blueprint Health’s accelerator program, announced a collaboration with longterm care facility — The Grove at Valhalla Rehabilitation and Nursing Center. The 160-bed facility is one of the 22 centers that make up CareRite Centers Network. The collaboration marks a milestone for PadInMotion because it expands the company’s customer base beyond hospitals and nursing homes and into longterm care facilities. PadInMotion currently works with Mount Sinai Health System.

In a phone interview with MedCity News, PadInMotion CEO Nir Altman, who cofounded the company with Dr. Gabe Vorobiof, said the platform addresses 15 conditions and is designed to educate patients about their condition and better understand how they can improve it. To that end, the platform includes health and wellness videos, curated medical apps, patient surveys and video conferencing.

The majority of patients using PadInMotion’s platform at the facility will be orthopedic patients, according to CareRite Centers Network Spokesperson Ashley Romano, who also took part in the phone interview. For these patients, PadInMotion can help patients understand what they need to do to prepare for surgery and optimize recovery.

Depending on the impact of the company’s technology over the next four to six months, other sites in the CareRite Centers Network could adopt the platform.

Altman added that next year, the company hopes to integrate data from users’ wearable devices so they can see their health in the context of their activities and behavior.

Photo: Bigstock

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