Health IT, Startups

Yale spinout raises $1.5M to help physicians match patients with the right antidepressant

The William K. Warren Foundation co-led the round with angel investor Kevin Ryan.

Money Growth

Spring Health, a Yale University spinout aimed at helping primary care physicians do a better job of prescribing appropriate drugs for patients with depression, has raised a seed round, according to a company press release emailed to MedCity News.

Spring Health CEO April Koh explained how the company’s platform works in a phone interview.

Koh described the growth stage company’s technology as part behavioral health screening tool and part clinical decision support for primary care physicians. Physicians administer a tablet-based questionnaire to patients with 25 questions to collect information on their mental health and other personal health information. The tool processes that data through an algorithm supported by machine learning to match patients with the most suitable depression drug, if a drug is necessary.

Koh explained that primary care physicians are frequently responsible for prescribing patients antidepressants. She noted that 79 percent of patients on anti-depressants were prescribed them by a primary care doctor. Spring Health’s platform is intended to help them do a better job of matching patients with drugs that best meet patients’ needs.

The William K. Warren Foundation co-led the round with angel investor Kevin Ryan, founder of Gilt, Business Insider, Nomad Health and MongoDB. The private foundation is affiliated with Saint Francis Health System in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Other participating +investors included RRE Ventures, North Sound Ventures, Saddlefire Ventures, and Rough Draft Ventures from General Catalyst Partners, according to the emailed release.

“We’ve found that some [primary care physicans] avoid screening patients for depression because they are uncomfortable with treating behavioral health conditions,” the release said. “Most PCPs have just one or two antidepressants they are comfortable prescribing.”

Screenshot of Spring Health's product interface

Screenshot of Spring Health’s product interface

Koh noted in a phone interview that the company views New York state’s Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment system as fueling interest for Spring’s platform in New York. The company also has customers in California.

“There’s a lot of cost savings to be had from reducing medication trial and error. Also, behavioral health is a high priority in the Medicaid agenda,” the release said.

Spring Health is one of several companies developing technology to improve the the quality of care in behavioral health. Some of the other businesses tackling this space include Cambridge, Massachusetts-based HealthRhythms, New York-based AbleTo, and Lyra Health and Honor in California.

Photo: Topp_Yimgrimm, Getty Images 

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