Even the best-laid plans can change their paths.
So it is with business startups, too — even those in Madison’s booming health tech industry.
Wellbe, founded in 2010, designed Guided CarePaths for patients facing surgery or other procedures — providing advance information, forms to complete, reminders and follow-up recovery instructions — to get them involved in their own return to health.
Knee and hip replacement patients were the first targets, with the company’s first CarePath released commercially in 2012, followed by bariatric surgery the following year, and then numerous other specialty areas, from sports medicine to neurosurgery to cancer care, via Wellbe’s ConnectedCare technology platform.
The government’s Medicare and Medicaid programs had begun moving toward changes in the way health care is paid — from the current system of charging for each service and product to a pay-for-performance model with financial incentives tied to the best patient outcomes. Wellbe’s CarePaths were meant to improve patient results, and in so doing, boost hospitals’ marks, too.
But the transition to a new payment system slowed after 2016, Wellbe CEO James Dias said.
So he made some nips and tucks in the company, including staff cuts — from a peak of 30 employees in 2016 to the current 12 — and is now moving forward with new technology, new investor funds and plans to rebuild the staff.
“We started to focus on a vision of acquisition and retention — (helping hospitals to) get good patients and keep them. Health care has become very competitive now,” Dias said.
Wellbe expects to finalize a $5.4 million funding round by the end of April, led by WISC Partners, a venture capital fund established by UW-Madison graduates who made good in Silicon Valley.
Wellbe has altered its goals to focus not on every patient who is found to need surgery or another type of treatment but specifically on those who are likely to go through with the procedure.
Use of AI
The company’s new product, ChoicePath, uses predictive analytics — also known as artificial intelligence — to figure out when patients are so fed up with the pain, they are actually ready to undergo an operation or a nonsurgical procedure.
“ChoicePath offers patients a uniquely designed online experience to learn and make choices about their treatments and providers. Proprietary algorithms facilitate the best matches for providers,” he said.
Apr 10, 2019 Judy Newman | Wisconsin State Journal
The epitome of an entrepreneur, Mark has seen the peaks and valleys of starting, operating, and assuming the risks of a new venture. He’s come up against payroll, had a few bad hires, and even swept the floors early on. Collectively, Mark’s companies have done over $360 million in sales and raised more than $38 million in venture capital, and he has successfully bought and/or sold eight companies.
James believes technology, when creatively applied, can improve our life experiences. Intrigued by the amazing potential for internet and mobile technology to engage us all, James created a business model to reshape personal health management.
Mike Splinter, an electrical engineer and innovator, has played a major role in driving advances in the high tech industry, with more than four decades of executive leadership experience including 12 years with Applied Materials, Inc. where he was served as chairman and CEO, and over 20 years with Intel, where he was executive vice president of sales and marketing, and executive vice president of the Technology and Manufacturing Group.
Mr. Baldwin was most recently Chairman and CEO of Baxa Corporation, a leader in devices, systems, and software for the handling, packaging, and tracking of fluid medications in a critical care setting. Under his leadership from 1997 until its sale to Baxter Corporation in 2011, the company sales grew from $25 million to over $170 million. As CEO, he led the eight-member board of directors and led a minority recap resulting in Goldman Sach’s private equity group owning 27% of the company. He was also an early investor and lead director in Pharmacy OneSource, an innovative software-as-a-service business that had a successful exit in 2010.