Health IT entrepreneurs showcase startups at capstone event, DreamIt Health demo day

The culmination of the DreamIt Health Baltimore accelerator program, a four-month intensive boot camp for health information technology entrepreneurs co-sponsored by Johns Hopkins, concluded on Wednesday, May 13, at DreamIt Health Demo Day. This one-day capstone event afforded startup companies the opportunity to share their progress and plans for the future with an audience of industry leaders, possible investors and potential customers.

“Demo Day represents the culmination of four months of hard work and determination,” says Jason Hardebeck, managing director of DreamIt Health Baltimore. “Every one of these companies has validated key business assumptions and developed viable strategies to move from concept to market. I can’t wait to watch these entrepreneurs ignite the second stage of their rocket ships!”

Six startup companies gave brief presentations about their ideas, which offer solutions to address a broad scope of health care challenges. These companies include a startup from Baltimore that has developed a mobile app designed to improve transition of patient care and avoid preventable medical errors.

During the 16-week boot camp, entrepreneurs received access to top-tier legal and accounting services as well as introductions to business leaders and resources from The Johns Hopkins University; the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; the University of Maryland, Baltimore; the Abell Foundation; the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore; BioHealth Innovation; and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. Companies received seed capital of up to $50,000 and were given temporary office space for working and networking.

“Technology is dramatically changing the world of health care,” says Christy Wyskiel, senior advisor to the president at The Johns Hopkins University. “New health care IT companies need several tools to begin their path to success, and DreamIt Health provides those tools. We are proud to co-sponsor this world-class accelerator that brings promising companies to Baltimore.”

The DreamIt Health Baltimore startups:

Baton (Baltimore) is a mobile app that ensures the seamless transition of patient care between hospital teams to avoid preventable medical errors.

Decisive Health Systems (San Francisco) is an online information and communication portal for the healthcare community, dedicated to helping doctors and their patients come together to make better, more informed decisions about patient care.

InsightMedi (Spain) is a photo-sharing network for health care professionals designed to enhance education and enable curbside consultations on a large scale.

Nomful (Chicago) democratizes personalized nutrition support, so that everyone can have access to a network of expert nutrition coaches.

Redox (Madison, Wisconsin) enables software developers to rapidly integrate with installed legacy health IT systems through a modern application programming interface.

Sisu Global Health (Grand Rapids, Michigan) develops medical devices for the most challenging environments and markets. Its first product enables autotransfusion of hemorrhaging patients in the field with military and developing world applications.