Advocate Aurora Health chooses finalists for 2021 Health Tech Venture Challenge

Finalists focus on provider well-being, MATTER sources and supports selection of top teams

Downers Grove and Chicago, IL — Advocate Aurora Health, one of the 12 largest not-for-profit integrated health systems in the country, and MATTER, the premier healthcare incubator and innovation hub, has announced the finalists for the 2021 Health Tech Venture Challenge. The global competition is seeking to accelerate solutions that prevent clinician burnout and promote well-being on the heels of COVID-19.

“Provider and team member well-being is a top priority at Advocate Aurora Health and we are excited about how innovators can help us advance this area,” said Kathie Bender Schwich, Chief Spiritual Officer and leader of well-being initiatives at Advocate Aurora Health. “This is our third innovation challenge, and every year we’ve been impressed with the range of solutions that are submitted; this year is no different. A cross-functional team dedicated to supporting well-being selected this year’s Finalists whose solutions help to address the physical, emotional or work-flow burdens that our teams face.”

“Provider and team member well-being is a top priority at Advocate Aurora Health and we are excited about how innovators can help us advance this area.” – Kathie Bender Schwich, Advocate Aurora Health

The selected finalists will participate in the pitch day on Monday, July 19 which is open to the public. The winning team will receive a $10,000 cash prize, a six-month MATTER membership and the commitment from Advocate Aurora Health to pilot their solution.

The finalists are:

Able Innovations

Able Innovations develops medical robotics to solve the painful, labor-intensive, and repetitive task of patient transfers (i.e. moving patients between beds). Today, multiple staff are required to exert back-breaking effort to perform transfers – exposing staff to injuries and exhaustion. Their innovative ALTA Platform™ performs lateral patient transfers in an effortless and hands-free manner, allowing the caregiver to focus on patient well-being while significantly reducing stress and strain. By doing so, The ALTA Platform results in dramatically improved safety for staff, a dignified experience for patients, and enhanced clinical efficiency for facilities.

Aiva

Aiva is the voice platform for better care. They deploy voice assistants like Amazon Alexa to increase satisfaction for caregivers and patients alike. Patients using Aiva enjoy more entertainment options, better control of their environment and instant two-way communication with their care team. Nurses use Aiva to triage requests, stay in closer touch with patients and communicate more easily with other staff. Aiva helps providers get more out of their existing infrastructure by voice-enabling systems in areas such as clinical communications, patient experience platforms, electronic health records, building management and IoT.

Health Note

Health Note automates clinic workflows by pre-documenting medical notes. The tool captures symptoms, medications, and more prior to patient encounters. Health Note asks patients the questions a provider would ask using customizable clinical pathways and algorithms to create usable documentation that directly integrates into the EMR.

EMR documentation is a leading cause of physician burnout and Health Note improves staff and patient experience by reducing provider time spent on computers. Their platform and chatbot are frictionless for patients. No app to download, no portal to sign into. Providers and staff save hours weekly by having well-prepared patients and documentation.

Wellsheet

Wellsheet is transforming the physician experience with the EHR with a predictive workflow platform that delivers a modern user experience for clinicians. Wellsheet’s patented software is integrated with Epic and Cerner and presents the right information for the clinical context customized for each physician. The company’s technology is deployed enterprise-wide in large health systems and has reduced physician time in the EHR by 44% per patient while delivering 100% physician satisfaction, with 86% of those identifying as highly satisfied according to KLAS Research. Using the FHIR API, Wellsheet can quickly and securely integrate into an EHR in weeks versus months or years, and its intuitive user interface allows for physician training to take place in minutes, versus days or weeks.

“Improving the well-being of our healthcare workers needs to be a priority, and the four finalists each approach this challenge with unique solutions,” said MATTER CEO Steven Collens. “We’re thrilled that three MATTER companies — Able Innovations, Aiva and Wellsheet — were selected as finalists during this competitive process.”

“We’re thrilled that three MATTER companies — Able Innovations, Aiva and Wellsheet — were selected as finalists during this competitive process.” – Steven Collens, CEO of MATTER

Watch as these dynamic companies pitch their solutions on July 19 and vie for a $10,000 prize and the chance to pilot their solution.

About Advocate Aurora Health

Advocate Aurora Health is one of the 12 largest not-for-profit, integrated health systems in the United States and a leading employer in the Midwest with 75,000 employees, including more than 22,000 nurses and the region’s largest employed medical staff and home health organization. A national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience and value-based care, the system serves nearly 3 million patients annually in Illinois and Wisconsin across more than 500 sites of care. Advocate Aurora is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies and is nationally recognized for its expertise in cardiology, neurosciences, oncology and pediatrics. The organization contributed $2.2 billion in charitable care and services to its communities in 2019. We help people live well.

About MATTER

At MATTER, we believe collaboration is the best way to improve healthcare. The MATTER collaborative includes more than 300 cutting-edge startups from around the world, working together with dozens of hospitals and health systems, universities and industry-leading companies to build the future of healthcare. Together we are accelerating innovation, advancing care and improving lives. For more information, visit matter.health and follow @MATTERhealth.