Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1476979
62 INNOVATION Cedars-Sinai contributes to $135M funding round for diagnostics company By Giles Bruce L os Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai Medical Center was among the people and entities pouring $35 million into diagnostics company Visby Medical for a financing round totaling more than $135 million. Visby Medical said it plans to use the investment to scale its production capacity and expand into advanced respiratory tests and antimicrobial resistance panels, according to a June 29 news release. Founded in 2012, the company previously released a sexually transmitted disease test for women that provides results in less than 30 minutes. "Especially during these times of market slowdown, our investors have shown significant confidence in Visby's innovative technology and mission," Visby Medical founder and CEO Adam de la Zerda, PhD, said in the release. "is funding will enable us to further our goal to provide the world's first instrument-free handheld PCR platform to accurately and rapidly test for a variety of serious infections to anyone who needs it." e over-subscribed series E funding round was led by Lightrock and included venture capitalist John Doerr. Lightrock partner Ashish Puri said the company's diagnostics tool has the "potential to decentralize lab testing, producing major benefits for communities around the world and opening up access to affordable healthcare results," according to the release. n Kentucky health system launches hospital-at-home platform for rural patients By Naomi Diaz Lexington, Ky.-based Appalachian Regional Healthcare has partnered with AI-powered remote patient monitoring company Biofourmis to provide acute-level hospital care inside patients' homes. Appalachian Regional Healthcare's hospital-at-home program will equip patients with Biofourmis' wearable biosensors, blood-pressure cuffs, pulse oximeters and weight scales to collect physiologic data from home, according to a June 21 press release. The health system will also use Biofourmis' remote clinical support team to monitor patients overnight. The program will launch with 10 virtual beds that can equip about 30 patients a month. The partnership with Biofourmis aids Appalachian Regional Healthcare's participation in the Rural Home Hospital project, which was started by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Brigham and Women's Hospital, both in Boston. Quincy, Ill.-based Blessing Health System and Appalachian Regional Healthcare were selected as the program's U.S. participants out of a pool of 700 applicants. n GE Healthcare launches wireless patient monitoring platform By Naomi Diaz G E Healthcare has launched a continuous monitoring platform with wearable sensors for detecting patient deterioration. The platform, dubbed Portrait Mobile, uses wearable technology to monitor general ward and post-operative patients, collecting data on respiratory rate, oxygen saturation and pulse rate during their entire hospital stay, according to a June 20 press release. The findings are communicated through a mobile monitor and alerts physicians and caregivers when a condition is worsening. "In an evaluation clinical study conducted at a London hospital in the UK, 90 percent of nurses reported that they feel more reassured about their patient's condition when continuous monitoring is used versus vital signs spot check measuring," said Erno Muuranto, engineering director at GE Healthcare in Finland. "Portrait Mobile provides reliable measurement technology and meaningful alarms in a mobile setting." The platform aims to provide early detection of patient deterioration that may help reduce length of stay, intensive care unit admission and improve patient outcomes. n