Shreya Patel

🌟 Boston’s Trailblazing Health Tech Startups! 🌟 I thought it would be nice to give a little shout out to some of the health tech startups in Boston putting in work. PathAI – Leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance the accuracy of pathology diagnoses, PathAI is paving the way for more precise and efficient disease detection. Akili Interactive – Bridging healthcare and digital therapeutics, Akili is developing video game-based treatments for cognitive disorders, bringing a unique approach to mental health and wellness. Biofourmis – This predictive health analytics leader offers remote patient monitoring solutions, allowing healthcare providers to offer personalized care and anticipate patient needs. Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc. – Specializing in synthetic biology, Ginkgo Bioworks is transforming drug development and diagnostics by creating custom organisms, fueling innovations in biotechnology Omada Health – A pioneer in virtual care, Omada Health provides digital health solutions to manage chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and mental health, bringing healthcare directly to patients. Buoy Health – Powered by AI, Buoy Health offers personalized health guidance and telehealth support, helping users make informed decisions about their health from home. Eqrx R – Focused on affordable drug development, EQRx is working to make essential medicines accessible, addressing one of healthcare’s biggest challenges—affordability. #BostonHealthTech #InnovationEcosystem #DigitalHealth #HealthcareInnovation #Startups

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🚨 Reflections from HLTH 2024! Some late reflections from HLTH this year from the IDEO Health team! Fortunately (and unfortunately), still timely because our industry evolves slowly (... but also quickly!). I personally had over 100 conversations across the ecosystem—venture, medtech, biopharma, health systems, payers—and clear patterns emerged. Matthew Higham, Hannah Rosenfeld, and I put our takes together. 1️⃣ Design can help us move beyond point solutions 2️⃣ AI should upskill healthcare workers, not replace them 3️⃣ Is “Practical innovation” just another buzzword? 🤔 4️⃣ Hospitals are flexing their power as innovation hubs 5️⃣ The time for good health is (always) NOW These aren’t just takeaways—they’re calls to action for how we design the future of healthcare. 👉 Dive deeper here: https://lnkd.in/gVreJEmG #hlth2024 #healthcare #innovation #design #ideo #futureofhealthcare #designthinking

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I have always been a proponent of good design systems. They can enable teams to work faster, keep the user experience consistent, and reduce the bottleneck when teams don’t have enough designers. My first experience with a proper design system is when we built one at athenahealth. We had something like 10K different types of buttons across the website, and the UX was getting a lot of negative feedback from customers. We also had a shortage of UX designers, no matter how fast we were hiring. Scott Mackie and Jen Cardello orchestrated the design system launch, and it was game changing. Teams were able to prototype faster. The code base was simplified. Eventually, the UX scores got drastically better. I love hearing storied about how other people have implemented design systems, and what it can do to help propel our products forward. I had a fantastic chat with John Athayde, former VP of Design at Powerfleet and owner of Meticulous, LLC in this Product Thinking Episode about just this. John talked about the importance of viewing internal tools as products in themselves, and that means prioritizing them appropriately. Designing them with a user-centric mindset is important for ensuring scalability and efficiency within an organization. Here's a glimpse of what we covered: 🚀 John's journey to PowerFleet and his lightbulb moment for enhancing internal controls. 🏗️ Why designers need to understand code—it's like building a house; you gotta know the basics! 💡 Crafting internal tools as complex, scalable systems with a product mindset. 👩‍💻 The key role of UX engineers in blending functionality and design seamlessly. 📱 Why UX and UI matter more than ever as users compare their interface experiences. As customers get pickier about their user experience, focusing on internal tools and design matters more than ever. John's journey and wisdom remind us just how vital UX designers are for driving success in fast-growing companies. What are your thoughts on the role of internal tools as products within organizations? Have you experienced any challenges or successes in this area? Let's keep the discussion going! Share your insights below. Listen now: https://lnkd.in/evWJyHA4 #ProductThinking #DesignSystems #InternalTools #UXUI #ProductManagement

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One key reason why healthcare technologies like AI, telemedicine, and software haven't structurally lowered costs or broadened access for the entire system after decades of experimentation (excluding pure financial engineering of payer contracts) is the limited reimagining of care delivery itself, with asynchronous telemedicine as a notable exception. In the same way that digitizing physical paper failed to exploit the capabilities of a new computing medium for word processing, hosting physician-patient conversations over video does not transform the actual delivery of care. In telemedicine, many of the inputs (e.g., clinician time) and therefore cost structures of in-person care persist, which is why we often see fee-for-service telemedicine companies struggle to achieve economies of scale (i.e., growing revenues non-linearly while growing costs linearly). Until we deconstruct the components of a medical appointment – from intake and triage, to chart review, history gathering, physical examination, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up – we will continue to be underwhelmed by the disconnect between the transformative potential of these technologies and real-world patient/system impact. I’m optimistic that the emergence of reliable and performant medical AI agents will urge us to perform this deconstruction and redesign the fundamental building blocks of a “medical appointment.”

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We sometimes get mired in clinical minutiae and tech specs. It's easy to lose sight of the forest for the trees. So it's helpful to reassess the problems we're trying to solve. One mega problem is access to care. This article unpacks that in all its challenging forms and offers some helpful insights into solutions. https://bit.ly/45xoE1n

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AI in healthcare is transforming the landscape—revolutionizing everything from patient care to operational efficiency. The conversations at Becker’s Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Meeting highlight the tangible impact AI has on precision medicine, predictive analytics, and enhancing the patient experience. Being at this conference, it’s clear that we're not just exploring possibilities but actively shaping a more intelligent and responsive healthcare system. It's exciting to witness how AI will soon become integral to every facet of healthcare. #AIinHealthcare #HealthTech #DigitalInnovation #HealthcareTransformation #beckersannualHITRCM #beckershealth

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Between this and those beautiful 200+ page grant applications for the National Institute on Aging (NIA), I feel like I have also been #backtoschool lately... This report is FULL of great info on the continued evolution of VR in senior housing and related care settings. Take a few minutes and give it a read - there's some great insights from folks like Clint Fowler Michelle Smith Ricky Peña and data from all of our own deployments, overseen by the great David Stoller. DM me if you want the PDF directly! #seniorliving #vr

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We conclude differently that Bigs aren’t getting it right so -give up on innovative care delivery. Nope. 35m get their primary care +msk/behavioral and more at work for free or near free. Direct care,called near site or onsite is offered at jumbo employers in much of the F100 and its doubling every 30 months. NPS scores are 88-98 in direct care. World class status. Excerpt Walgreens paid a fortune for VillageMD, then even more for Summit Medical Group . At one point in late 2021, VillageMD CEO Tim Barry told me that their main issue was the execution risk of having to open more clinics per week then Starbucks did at the height of its expansion. Walgreens made a minority investment then kept doubling down on its bet- three years later it has written off the whole $8bn and its stock price is worth less now than doctor network Doximity. Both of these companies and CVS have shown that it’s really hard just to get the basics right opening clinics in retail stores. That’s despite the fact that most Americans have no pcp and can’t get an appointment with a captive audience walking into their stores every day picking up meds. CVS has the added issue of trying to integrate a decent sized insurer into its operations just at the time when the Medicare Advantage gravy train is running out of steam. CVS’ CEO Karen Lynch took over Aetna, a CVS Health Company recently and then this past week was dispatched to the cheap seats herself. (Don’t feel too bad for her, she’s getting $4m a year to “consult” with the board). Two things have hit Medicare Advantage. First the government is starting to look into risk adjustment upcoding. CVS, you may recall, bought Signify Health, a company specializing in sending nurses into seniors’ homes to perform said upcoding. Secondly, #MedicareAdvantage plans had surprisingly little information about and control over their members who were being cared for by their non-risk bearing delivery system (which is to say, most of it). They appeared to be totally surprised that post pandemic procedure numbers ratcheted up and were powerless to stop it. Well, Wall Street noticed. Similar problems have hit Optum the engine behind UnitedHealthGroup’s profitable growth for the past decade or so. It’s not just the biggest health tech company in America, it’s also the biggest medical group owner—even if CEO and bumbling Englishman Andrew Witty doesn’t seem to know how many doctors it controls. They are being exposed in Stat on a weekly basis for basically semi-frequently causing their doctors to lie about their patients’ health status, just as the The Wall Street Journal accuses their associated health plan of inventing diseases and procedures—all to bill the government more. You can argue back and forth but it does appear that the strategy of buying every medical group it can see and provider fracking appears to have hit a bumpy road. https://lnkd.in/gzT25DcN

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Blueprint really is THE platform for mental health therapists. Not only does it give time back to practitioners but also helps them deliver even better care through data-driven insights. And Danny Freed’s personal story on why he started Blueprint is becoming a reality with Blueprint 2.0

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I had a great time joining this insightful discussion on Vertical AI and learning from brilliant minds like Aaron Lee and Amit Patankar, alongside Wayne Hu and the team at SignalFire! As we've seen at Peer AI, Vertical AI has tremendous potential to unlock efficiencies and create new opportunities across industries. I’m inspired by the unique approaches my fellow panelists were taking to refine products and keep humans in the loop where it matters most -- and particularly appreciate the similarities in our businesses across very different industries! Looking forward to continued collaboration in this space! #VerticalAI #PeerAI #startups #GenerativeAI

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Exciting news from Monica Chopra, Jeffrey De Flavio, MD, Samantha Adelberg, and the rest of the Auxa Health team as they officially announce their $5.2M Seed round. The team's deep industry expertise and drive for change have led them to solve critical infrastructural friction to providing quality healthcare and adoption of value-based care. Auxa's AI benefit navigation platform is simplifying the complexities of healthcare by streamlining all of the fragmented and siloed data and information to make it actionable in real-time for healthcare organizations. For the 70% of Americans who aren't getting access to the health and social care benefits they deserve, Auxa's solution will be pivotal in enabling equitable care. We're thrilled to partner with co-investors Zeal Capital Partners, AlleyCorp, Laconia, and Chaac Ventures on this journey and look to share many more milestones ahead. Cc K50 Ventures, Ryan Bloomer, Daniel Vásquez, Nick Talwar, Stefanie Ng https://lnkd.in/dPDY7-Db

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Digital health isn't just about apps and wearables. It's about rewiring our neural circuitry for wellbeing. Join me on Charmhealth's podcast as we explore the frontier of brain-based behavior change. #DigitalHealth #NeuroscienceRevolution https://lnkd.in/gTFka44P

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Partnerships Drive Innovation, Value, and Better Outcomes. This week, I’m at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, connecting with InHandPlus CEO Hwiwon Lee. Together, we’re exploring an exciting partnership that leverages the best of both our companies in the medication adherence space: our MMAS adherence assessments and InHandPlus’s AI-powered smartwatch technology. 💊In medication management, a 100% effective solution is the goal—and combining subjective and objective measures brings us closer. The #MMAS (Morisky Medication Adherence Scale) helps identify patients at risk of non-adherence and pinpoints barriers they may face, allowing for targeted interventions. Meanwhile, InHandPlus’s smartwatch uses an AI-enabled camera to track real-time actions, verifying that medications are taken as prescribed. This collab holds promise for patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers alike, creating a seamless blend of behavioral insight and real-time monitoring. By bridging subjective risk assessments with objective verification, we’re making medication adherence more accurate, proactive, and effective. 📣Here’s to partnerships that truly enhance the end-user experience and bring measurable value to healthcare innovation!🥂🍻 the company called adherence. #TechCrunchDisrupt #HealthcareInnovation #MedicationAdherence #PatientOutcomes

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There is a blueprint for success and MDisrupt has the experts to deliver it!

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What if your biggest strategic advantage wasn't your tech stack or your market position, but your kindness?" That's the provocative question at the heart of our conversation with Dominick Bizzarro, who transformed MVP Healthcare through what he calls "the radical act of being human." As Chief Strategy Officer, he discovered something surprising: The most effective change agents weren't the loudest or most assertive - they were the ones who could build genuine connections and create shared vision. But my favorite part? Dominick's brilliant (and slightly wild) experiment using AI to create his personal advisory board. Listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gRJCf8nh

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The recent downsizing of VBC operations by giants like Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS marks a pivotal moment in the healthcare sector. This shift from a previous era of aggressive expansion to a more measured approach in scaling value-based care (VBC) reflects a maturing market that prioritizes sustainable growth over size. However, the contraction of these clinics doesn't signal a decrease in the viability of VBC models. In fact, top-performing Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) continue to prove the profitability of focusing on primary care. These ACOs excel by strategically targeting practices that manage sick yet stable patients—those who are most manageable within a VBC framework and are crucial for consistent shared savings. The success formula is clear: select practices with the right patient demographics and ensure alignment with local specialists and hospitals ready to embrace collaborative, value-driven care. Maximizing risk scores and focusing on preventing care cost escalations in these targeted patient populations are essential tactics. As we move forward, let's consider these shifts as strategic realignments rather than setbacks. For those of us dedicated to transforming healthcare, it's a reminder to remain adaptable, data-driven, and patient-centered in our approaches.

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Even if you're not interested in #healthcare or the byzantine structure of how #medicaid works, it's still worth listening to Nikita Singareddy from Fortuna Health on a16z Bio + Health's podcast "Raising Health" this week. Such a good rundown of the many challenges that entrepreneurs and builders are facing when it comes to trying to improve healthcare. Keep up the great work, Nikita! https://lnkd.in/g4K3fNmU

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There’s a category we believe is getting too little attention when it comes to AI in healthcare: AI Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI) While AI ambient scribes and autonomous medical coding solutions have gotten most of the headlines, we’d argue AI CDI is equally impactful when it comes to quality care and accurate billing. For those not familiar, CDI ensures that clinical documentation accurately reflects the patient’s medical condition and the provided care. Historically, CDI was a manual slog, with dedicated CDI specialists, nurses, and physicians painstakingly reviewing patient charts to ensure documentation supported the care delivered. Today, AI is reshaping this landscape. While it’s still early days, we’re seeing three primary approaches to applying AI when it comes to CDI: 1️⃣ CDI + ambient scribing—an AI ambient scribe and AI CDI assistant operate simultaneously, generating comprehensive notes and surfacing codes for physicians to review at the point of care. (Example: Ambience Healthcare’s AutoCDI) 2️⃣ CDI via real-time diagnosis support—diagnoses are suggested at the point of care based on clinical data in the EHR, with auto-generated documentation and audit trails. (Example: Regard) 3️⃣ CDI via an AI-driven post-coding / pre-billing review—the entire patient record is ingested and analyzed against what is coded, surfacing suggestions for revenue and quality opportunities. (Example: SmarterDx) To date, AI in healthcare has focused primarily on administrative use cases. With the increasing adoption of AI CDI solutions, we’re now taking a step closer to clinical workflows. As clinicians get used to AI-suggested diagnoses in the CDI context, it will be interesting to see if this increases their comfort with AI playing a role in clinical care. Here's our working list of AI CDI vendors. Anyone else we should add? • Ambience Healthcare • Brellium • Iodine Software • Regard • Semantic Health • SmarterDx   

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