Tag Archives: Digital Health

Two Top Health Investors Share Their 2023 Tips for Founders

July 6, 2023Business, Health, Innovation, Insights, Startups7wireVentures, Digital Health, Distributed Ventures, Entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, Funding, fundraising, health innovation, Health Tech, impact investing, investing, Lee Shapiro, Logan Plaster, raising funds, Shawn Ellis, WisdomNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 21:15 — 29.2MB)

Whether they like it or not – and they probably don’t – every health tech founder needs to think about money. How much they need, and how to get it. For many founders, raising outside funds becomes a whole new full time job that they have to take on. This year, funding in the sector has dipped sharply, making that job even harder and more stressful.

On our podcast this week, we hear from the other side of the table. We sat down with the heads of two major health tech investment firms and got their advice for health innovation entrepreneurs in 2023.

First up is Lee Shapiro, managing partner at 7wireVentures and long-time collaborator with StartUp Health. Shapiro is a luminary in digital health investing so we asked him for his macro view of the industry and got a few practical tips for founders raising funds today.

Then we hear from Shawn Ellis, managing partner at Distributed Ventures, a $100M fund that invests in Seed and Series A deals and has a strong health tech focus. In our chat Ellis broke down where his firm has found success recently and exactly what he looks for in a pitch.

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Looking to break down health barriers? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our Health Equity Moonshot.
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How Health Tech Startups Can Launch with Government Contracts

June 9, 2023Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAccess to care, Digital Health, health innovation, Health Moonshot, Health Moonshots, Health Tech, Health Transformer, Health Transformers, Innovation, Logan Plaster, Nutrition, Nutrition and Fitness, Shireen Abdullah, Suzy Shirley, VA, Veteran Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, VHA, YumlishNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:36 — 18.9MB)

So you’re healthcare founder who has designed and built, by the sweat of your brow, a new platform or product that can help people live longer, healthier lives. Now, you just need to get it into people’s hands so they can use it, give feedback, help you iterate, and ultimately scale. As every founder knows, building the product is just a first step. Getting to market is a whole other challenge.

There are lots of different approaches for go-to-market strategy – with StartUp Health’s community of nearly 500 companies we’ve seen them all. One we wanted to highlight today is the idea of pursuing partnerships with the government or military. Given the enormous number of people that fall within the care of the military and federal agencies and the funding that gets allocated for their health, this is a tempting strategy. But it’s not for the faint of heart or those short on runway.

In this week’s podcast episode we’ll talk to two people who are making this marriage of startups and government contracts work – from two different angles.

First we’ll hear from Shireen Abdullah, CEO & Founder of Yumlish (which joined StartUp Health in 2019), about how she’s working with the US Air Force to help keep recruits healthy and service ready. Turns out, poor nutrition could actually become a national security threat.

Second, we’ll hear from the other side of the table. Suzy Shirley heads up community engagement at the VA’s Pathfinder program. Pathfinder was established just recently with the express purpose of making it easier for startups to access the Veterans Health Administration, which, if you’re not familiar, is massive. The VHA is the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States, providing care at more than 1200 facilities, covering over nine million enrolled veterans. Many healthcare startups would love to work with this patient population, but traditionally the administrative barriers have been high. Suzy Shirley explains how her team is changing the paradigm. She provides some practical tips for how runway-limited startups can make meaningful headway with such a huge government institution and start piloting high-impact products.

Enjoy the episode, which was recorded at the ViVE 2023 conference in Nashville.

Founders: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

How These Entrepreneurs Are Empowering Community-Based Healthcare

May 25, 2023Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAccess to care, Determined Health, Digital Health, health innovation, Health Moonshot, Health Moonshots, Health Transformers, Healthy Longevity, Innovation, Logan Plaster, Loneliness, Longevity, Pear Suite, Senior Care, SeniorsNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:10 — 20.3MB)

Some startups provide tools directly consumers and patients while others tackle issues in the hospital, at the other end of the care journey.

Our two guests today, Dr. Scott Kaiser from Determined Health and Nick Lockett from Pear Suite, occupy a sort of middle ground. They empower communities and community-based organizations to provide better care for vulnerable people.

It doesn’t take much to see the need for more empowered communities in healthcare. Every day we see more headlines about an epidemic of loneliness and the role of social connection in health outcomes. That data is in, and it’s not good. We know from our own experience that there are health concerns you might share with a friend before turning to a doctor.

Nowhere is the need for community-based health intervention more clear than with seniors. According to our guests today, that process starts with empowering authentic, actionable communication. So they’ve built unique tools and platforms designed make that process scaleable, replicable, and easy.

Our first guest today is Scott Kaiser, MD, CEO & Co-founder of Determined Health, a company that joined StartUp Health in 2022. Dr. Kaiser, a trained geriatrician, along with this team, was recently recognized by CHIME and ScaleHealth as a finalist in their patent engagement challenge. After receiving the award in the “digital front door” category, he likened his company to being the Walmart greeter for the healthcare system.

Our next guest is Nick Lockett, CTO & Co-founder at Pear Suite. As you’ll hear, Pear Suite – also a StartUp Health company since 2022 – gives organizations the tools necessary to track community-driven care and identify social determinants of health. Their data-driven approach upgrades a life-saving process that has often been relegated to pen and paper.

Enjoy the episode, which was recorded at the ViVE 2023 conference in Nashville.

Founders: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

Unpluq Helps People Get Off Their Screens and Back into Life

May 3, 2023Business, Health, Innovation, Startups, UncategorizedDigital Health, Health Moonshots, Health Transformers, Innovation, Logan Plaster, mental health, Mental Health & Happiness, Mental Health and Happiness, mental wellness, Wellbeing, wellnessNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 24:10 — 22.1MB)

Our StartUp Health NOW guest this week is Caroline Cadwell, the CEO and Co-founder of Unpluq – a Dutch company that joined StartUp Health in 2021.

Unpluq is on a mission to empower people to change their digital habits and improve their wellbeing.

Cadwell and her team have designed a consumer-facing device and platform that helps people regain control and intentionality with their time. They’re pushing back against a world where attention span is eroding, which has contributed to lower feelings of wellbeing and a decline in executive function.

Listen in to hear how they’ve tackled the problem.

Founders: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

How to Partner with Investors to Grow & Scale Your Company w/ Cheryl Cheng, CEO & Founder of Vive Collective

October 11, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, Insights, StartupsCheryl Cheng, Digital Health, Health Tech, Innovation, investing, investment, Logan Plaster, mindset, Vive Collective, WisdomNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 57:34 — 65.9MB)

This week we welcome Cheryl Cheng to the interview chair. Cheryl is the CEO & Founder of Vive Collective. Previously Cheryl was a Partner at BlueRun Ventures, one of the top VC firms in Silicon Valley.

At Vive, she’s taking her 15 years of experience growing startups and putting it specifically into building, funding, and scaling digital health companies.

Cheryl is also an advisor to the Stanford Biodesign program and is on the advisory board for Yale Medical School’s Digital Health and Innovation Center.

We wanted to have Cheryl on one of our Fireside Chats to learn about Vive Collective – since it’s a relatively new kid on the block – and hear what kinds of opportunities she’s seeing in the market. We held this conversation in front of a live virtual audience of Health Transformers from the StartUp Health Portfolio, so you’ll get to hear some of their tactical questions mixed in throughout the session.

The goal for these sessions is to have candid conversations with people who can cut through the corporate speak and investment jargon, and Cheryl Cheng understood the assignment. We hope you enjoy.

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Want more content like this? You can subscribe to the podcast as well as other health innovation updates at startuphealth.com/content.
Sign up for StartUp Health Insider™ to get funding insights, news, and special updates delivered to your inbox.

Passionate about Type 1 diabetes? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our T1D Moonshot.

Looking to break down health barriers? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our Health Equity Moonshot.

Health Innovation Implementation: Dr. Robert Wilson on How Partnering with PreventScripts Enhanced His Medical Practice

September 27, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAccess to care, Brandi Harless, chronic care, Cost to Zero, CovenantCare, CovenantCare Family Practice, Cure Disease, diabetes, Digital Health, Dr. Natalie Davis, Dr. Robert Wilson, health innovation, Health Moonshots, health transformation, Health Transformers, Logan Plaster, md, Natalie Davis, PreventScripts, Robert Wilson, Type 2 Diabetes, Type II DiabetesNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:39 — 21.2MB)

Typically on this show we talk to the health tech founders – who we call Health Transformers – that are creating the tools and platforms that will modernize our health system. This week we have a different kind of guest who will help round out the picture of how healthcare innovation goes from idea to real-world implementation.

Our guest is Robert Wilson, MD, a family physician who runs CovenantCare Family Practice, a multi-site medical practice in Tennessee. Dr. Wilson popped up on our radar because he was an early partner for PreventScripts, a startup that’s part of the StartUp Health portfolio. PreventScripts, led by Brandi Harless and Natalie Davis, MD, has created a platform that helps family doctors like Dr. Wilson identify patients who would benefit from chronic care management. Think about a patient who is pre-diabetic and all signs point towards a long battle with Type 2 diabetes. While Dr. Wilson might be too overextended to identify and coach this patient before the disease sets in, PreventScripts can identify the risk and put the patient on a clinically-proven program. Patients with chronic diseases, or the risk of disease, get heightened care between visits, and Dr. Wilson gets added reimbursement.

We wanted to talk to Dr. Wilson to understand why he was interested in partnering with a health startup, as this is one of the key hurdles for any health innovator. How do you find the right clinical partner, a place to prove out your brilliant idea in the real world, and then iterate based on user feedback?

In the conversation, we’ll get into the real-world challenges that Dr. Wilson faces, his motivation for evolving his practice, and how PreventScripts has helped him fill gaps in patient care.

Learn more and connect with the team at PreventScripts.

Entrepreneurs: How to get investment from StartUp Health startuphealth.com

Passionate about Type 1 diabetes? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our T1D Moonshot.

Looking to break down health barriers? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our Health Equity Moonshot.

The Future of Virtual Health, with Amwell’s Dr. Roy Schoenberg & Murray Brozinsky

September 13, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAmwell, Conversa Health, Digital Health, Fireside Chat, health innovation, Murray Brozinsky, Roy Schoenberg, StartUp Health, Steven Krein, Telehealth, telemedicine, Virtual CareNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:03:45 — 87.6MB)

We’ve talked extensively on this podcast about how COVID ushered in a period of rapid adoption of telemedicine. According to McKinsey, we went from around 11% of people using telehealth to around 46% during the pandemic.

Few companies in the world were better poised to capitalize on this moment than Amwell. What’s so interesting about Amwell is that they weren’t created to meet this moment. They have been patiently and persistently ringing the telemedicine bell since 2006. Back then, seeing your doctor over your computer seemed like a pipe dream, or worse, some dystopian future.

Now, well, things look a bit different. Building the infrastructure to deliver healthcare virtually is an idea whose time has come. And Amwell’s persistence has made them a world leader in the market.

Now, Amwell is expanding the definition of virtual care. Last year they acquired StartUp Health portfolio company Conversa Health, which uses chatbot functionality to automate care in between visits to improve efficiency and outcomes.

This episode of the podcast is pulled from a Fireside Chat where we sat down with Roy Schoenberg, MD, CEO and Co-founder of Amwell, and Murray Brozinsky, CEO of Conversa Health. The chat, which was moderated by Steven Krein, CEO and Co-founder of StartUp Health, pulls back the curtain on how these two companies came together, the lessons learned from the process, and what it all means for the future of virtual care. Roy and Murray are a wealth of wisdom and experience when it comes to digital health, so it was a powerful conversation. Hope you enjoy.

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Passionate about Type 1 diabetes? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our T1D Moonshot.

How Health Innovation Startups Can Partner with Anthem

June 7, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAnthem, Digital Health, Entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, Health, Innovation, Logan Plaster, Mindsets, Moonshot Mindset, Omid Toloui, StartUp Health, startups, WisdomNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:01 — 26.3MB)

In health innovation, you can have the most amazing idea and a rock-solid business plan, but in order to scale, you might still need to find the right enterprise partner. Topping this list for many entrepreneurs is Anthem, which serves 40 million people and is ranked #57 on the Fortune 500 list. It’s safe to say that if your startup can get distribution through this network, it’s going to put you on a whole new trajectory.

In order to find out how Anthem works with startups, we invited Omid Toloui, Anthem’s Vice President of Innovation, to join us for a chat. Anthem has had a range of programs in recent years aimed at collaborating with nimble, forward-thinking startups, like their Innovation Studio in Atlanta and their Digital Incubator Program. But we wanted Omid to pull back the curtain on exactly how Anthem thinks about innovation, and how startups can partner with them.

This StartUp Health NOW episode was excerpted from a Fireside Chat held in front of a live audience of Health Transformers from the StartUp Health portfolio. Enjoy.

Entrepreneurs: How to get investment from StartUp Health startuphealth.com

Strategies – From an Australian – on Breaking Into New Global Health Tech Markets

May 24, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, StartupsAustralia, Digital Health, Global Health, Health, Innovation, Logan Plaster, Peter Birch, Talking Health TechNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:01 — 80.2MB)

This week on the podcast we sat down with Peter Birch, the founder and host of the Talking HealthTech podcast. Peter hails from Australia and over the course of producing some 240 episodes of his podcast, he’s gained a unique perspective on his healthcare ecosystem. He’s seen what works, what doesn’t, and what it takes for a foreign health company to make inroads in the Australian market.

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Does Teladoc’s Stock Drop Matter? Jamey Edwards on Achieving Health Moonshots in the Face of Rocky Public Markets

May 3, 2022Business, Health, Innovation, Insights, Startups, UncategorizedDigital Health, Entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, Innovation, Jamey Edwards, Logan Plaster, mindset, Mindsets, StartUp Health, Teledoc, Telehealth, telemedicine, WisdomNicole Kinsey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:40 — 26.3MB)

This week’s episode of StartUp Health NOW is a conversation with Jamey Edwards, Chief Operating Officer at StartUp Health. Jamey has been working in the telemedicine space for more than a decade, and his last company, Cloudbreak, went public via SPAC last year. So when we saw the headlines that Teladoc’s stock dropped 40% – alongside other dips in the telemedicine public market – we called him up for a dose of perspective. In this conversation with host Logan Plaster, Edwards breaks down the news from Wall Street and gives startups some health moonshot wisdom. Bottom line: stay focused on the mission because improving global health is a marathon, not a sprint.

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