Austin, Texas-based NarrativeDx, a startup that helps hospitals analyze patient comments, grievances and online reviews, has secured a strategic investment, according to a news release. NarrativeDx cofounder and CEO Kyle Robertson confirmed the investment amount is $3 million.
Christiana Care Health System, the Texas Medical Center and Summation Health Ventures (a fund backed by MemorialCare Health System and Cedars-Sinai Health System) led the round. HealthX Ventures and Cultivation Capital, which took part in the startup’s previous funding rounds, also participated.
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NarrativeDx intends to use the money to boost its sales and marketing efforts, continue innovating its product and hire new talent.
The startup was founded by Robertson and Senem Guney, who serves as chief patient experience officer. The idea behind NarrativeDx came from healthcare leaders’ focus on the patient experience, Robertson explained in a phone interview.
“There’s a lot of money riding on these patient experience issues,” he said.
That’s where the Austin startup comes in. Its offering relies on artificial intelligence to pinpoint actionable insights from patient feedback with the ultimate goal of improving patient satisfaction and financial performance. Last year, the U.S. Patent Office awarded the company a patent that covers the automated analysis of patient feedback.
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After running the hospital’s feedback data through its patented AI, NarrativeDx sends the analysis back to the hospital in the form of charts and graphs. The aim is to make it easier for a provider or healthcare executive to understand the information and gain valuable insights.
Robertson also noted NarrativeDx is adding a new product line focused on physician and nurse feedback. The goal of this offering is to help health systems reduce employee burnout and turnover. Robertson said the tool is already live at pilot clinics, but NarrativeDx is continuing to work on and improve it.
The startup has raised $7.1 million to date, Robertson noted. This includes funding rounds in 2016 and 2017.
NarrativeDx was part of the Texas Medical Center accelerator’s sixth cohort of digital health startups last year. Additionally, it made the cut for the Cedars-Sinai accelerator in the fall of 2017.
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