Independa, the San Diego-based developer of mHealth solutions for seniors and others needing help to live at home, is kicking off the new year with a flurry of announcements that give the company's platform greater breadth and availability.
Timed to coincide with the Digital Health Summit at the 2013 International CES in Las Vegas, the company announced on Jan. 9 that its CloudCare suite, which includes medication and appointment reminders; wireless health, remote monitoring and safety solutions; and support for daily living and social engagement activities, is now generally available on LG television sets and Samsung tablet computers.
This news follows an announcement last week that Independa had closed its Series A Preferred Stock financing round at $5 million after receiving new investments to fund expanded sales, new research and development and distribution. The funding comes from City Hill Ventures, a previous investor and LG Electronics USA, which has been a strategic partner for some time.
Company CEO Kian Saneii said in an interview last week that the announcements point to Independa's strength in the mHealth field and its plans for future growth.
"We're addressing health through wellness and independence," he said. "We're fortunate in the sense that we've done things differently, (by) building a holistic platform as a service."
"We're not telecare, we're not just telemedicine, we're not just social engagement," he added. "There's no real term for that. It's more of a proactive care."
The LG Electronics partnership is actually an extension of an existing deal, in which LG has developed Pro:Centric Healthcare TVs embedded with the CareCloud platform.
“The latest Independa developments highlight how the company’s Integrated CloudCare solutions help healthcare organizations deliver the right care at the right time as the aging market experiences a dramatic increase in longevity and lifetime health,” said Laurie Orlov, founder of the market research firm Aging in Place Technology Watch, in the release issued by Independa. “By spanning the multiple stages and locations of care and by supporting the reality of multiple caregiving roles, Independa offers a compelling example of the next generation of technology to meet the needs of older adults."
The Samsung deal, meanwhile, embeds Independa's Angela social engagement solution for the elderly into Samsung Mobile Galaxy Tab 2 tablets. Part of the CloudCare platform, the Angela solution offers one-touch access to Internet services, medication and appointment reminders, e-mail and social engagement services (like Facebook) and interactive games.
“We are delighted to be collaborating with Independa to bring to market an innovative solution that addresses healthcare organizations’ growing needs to provide enhanced care for the elderly cost-effectively,” said Tim Wagner, vice president and general manager of enterprise sales at Samsung Mobile, in a separate press release issued by Independa. “This solution further cements Samsung Mobile’s commitment to the healthcare and medical equipment industries.”
“We’re gratified to see global brands embracing our technology,” Saneii said in the press release. “Technology leaders are helping us realize our vision of creating a single holistic enterprise platform to engage elders and help their professional and family caregivers alike address a spectrum of caregiving needs. We are pleased to be providing family members peace of mind, knowing Independa partners are leveraging our award-winning solutions to provide consistent care to their loved ones; lower burdens of cost, time and worry; and elevate social engagement, comfort and quality of life.”
"Our investment in Independa is in line with our belief that Independa Angela is an ideal complement to our Pro:Centric platform for delivering services that can gave a direct, quality-of-life impact on seniors and provide peace of mind to their loved ones, while also making the jobs of their professional caregivers easier and more effective," said Nandhu Nandhakumar, senior vice president of LG Electronics, in announcing last week's financing deal.
Saneii said Independa is actively pursuing customers in health insurers, senior and independent living facilities and home care providers and is looking for new markets.
"There's never a point where we think we have it all," he said.
