MercyOne has piloted a new patient-provider matching tool that aims to make it easier for patients to connect with a primary care physician. MercyOne worked with Patient Bond, started by former Procter & Gamble employees, to develop the online tool, said Janell Pittman, chief marketing and digital strategy officer for MercyOne. The 11-question quiz was developed from an inventory of 384 different attributes that the company narrowed down to the ones
Health
November 4, 2021
Holmes Murphy spins off SPH search platform to Coupe Health
Minnesota-based Coupe Health LLC has purchased SPH LLC, formerly known as SimplePay Health, from insurance brokerage Holmes Murphy & Associates, the companies announced. Launched by Holmes Murphy in 2018, SPH is an alternative health care product for self-insured commercial employers. The SPH platform is designed to enable employees to easily search for high-quality medical and pharmacy plans. Coupe Health, a subsidiary of Stella Health in Minnesota, plans to launch a SPH-powered health
October 7, 2021
MercyOne partners with Phreesia to automate social needs screenings
MercyOne has partnered with Phreesia Inc., a Raleigh, N.C.- based health care technology company, to provide electronic screening of every MercyOne patient to evaluate unmet social needs. The Des Moines-based health system began using the screening platform developed by Phreesia in September 2020, and over the past year has conducted more than 35,000 social determinants of health screenings in its Central and North Iowa markets. The screenings have identified that 18% of
July 29, 2021
Unity Point Health-Des Moines partners with Qventus to improve patient experience
Unity Point Health-Des Moines is partnering with Qventus, a clincal operations system using machine learning, artificial intelligence and behavioral science, to optimize and streamline patient flow and discharge processes. The Qventus Inpatient Solution processes data in real time, the first health care operations system to do so. AI will predict the time and location of discharge and identify barriers while machine learning will help staff coordinate and prioritize orders for
April 21, 2021
Navigate Wellness Solutions names Jeremy Knipper chief technology officer
Des Moines-based employee engagement company Navigate Wellness Solutions named Jeremy Knipper as chief technology officer, the company announced on Wednesday. Knipper previously served as vice president of technology for the company. In his new role, he will lead the strategic development of health and well-being technology platforms. Navigate serves organizations interested in offering technical wellness platforms to their employees, and Navigate’s well-being platform has more than 1.5 million active users,
December 17, 2020
MercyOne’s AI-enabled system supports new statewide hospital transfer center
MercyOne announced last week it has signed an agreement with Hospital IQ, a Boston-based provider of predictive hospital operations software, to expand its use of artificial intelligence to improve coordination of patient access to care as Iowa’s COVID-19 hospitalizations and patient transfers surge. The new system provides an unprecedented level of emergency coordination between all of the state’s hospitals, led by an AI-based command system that MercyOne now operates from
December 3, 2020
University of Iowa Healthcare contracts with Caresyntax
University of Iowa Health Care is contracting with Caresyntax, a medical analytics and AI company developing procedural-based specialty technology in disciplines such as surgery, interventional radiology and obstetrics. The agreement between Caresyntax and UI Health Care will use real-time data to improve patient safety and efficiency of surgeries performed at the university medical center, Caresyntax said in a statement. Caresyntax will install hardware to collect surgical, procedural and team-based video
October 30, 2020
Applications open to startups for pitch at Iowa BioTech Showcase & Conference
The Iowa Biotechnology Association (IowaBio) is accepting applications through Nov. 6 from startups interested in competing at the annual Iowa Biotech Showcase & Conference, formerly known as Partnering for Growth. The winner of the Biotech Showcase will receive $10,000 and a one-year membership to IowaBio. Eight companies in industries including food/agriculture, human and animal health, medical devices, and industrial and environmental materials will be selected in early December to compete
October 1, 2020
MercyOne partners with insurtech Oscar to offer health plans in 23 Iowa counties
Oscar, a New York City-based health insurtech company, announced it has partnered with MercyOne health system to offer Oscar’s individual and family health insurance plans in 23 counties in Iowa beginning in 2021, pending regulatory approval. These health plans are anticipated to be sold on the federal health insurance exchange, with coverage to begin on Jan. 1. “As part of our commitment to improve the access and availability of health care services
September 17, 2020
UnityPoint Health fourth Iowa entity to be affected in Blackbaud ransomware attack
More than 27,000 people have been contacted after UnityPoint Health was affected by a ransomware attack against third-party vendor Blackbaud, a cloud-based provider of fundraising and finance services for education and nonprofit entities, reports KCCI. The attack, which took place between Feb. 7-May 20, impacted patients and donors within the St. Luke’s Foundation in Sioux City, Trinity Health Foundation in the Quad Cities and Des Moines Foundation in Des Moines.
