Member Article

Healthcare technology company secures investment for growth

A software provider aiming to revolutionise the healthcare technology market has secured £600,000, enabling it to apply its innovative data collection methodologies to new clinical pathways.

Newcastle-based Digital Spark has received £550,000 from the Finance for Business North East Technology Fund and £50,000 from the Northern IT Research Fund, both managed by IP Group plc.

The company has a proven track record of success having launched a CaptureStroke product that was built in collaboration with clinicians, NHS North East and the North of England Cardiovascular Network. CaptureStroke supplies medical teams with critical, real-time information about stroke patients and has already been adopted by 17 hospitals within the UK.

Although rival software is in use nationally, CaptureStroke was designed by Digital Spark within a clinical environment to be more intuitive, answering the exacting needs of clinical teams and is proven to increase efficiency, improve data quality and inform stroke pathway changes.

The £600,000 investment is being used to underpin Digital Spark’s rapid growth as demand for the product escalates. It is also needed to support research & development so that Digital Spark’s methodology can be used to benefit other clinical pathways outside of a stroke.

Digital Spark’s strategy director Michael Bell said: “Evidence-based clinical practice can significantly improve patient outcomes, which is why data collection is so important in the healthcare sector. Although there are other options out there, our CaptureStroke product was developed hand in hand with hospital teams and clinical networks, and is both easy to use and aligned to current audit and care performance requirements. We believe it can revolutionise current working practices at a time when efficiencies have to be made without compromising patient care.

“Working with IP Group has been an extremely positive experience as the team immediately grasped the benefit of the software and how the methodology can be applied to other clinical pathways. They have helped us build new networks within the medical field and local marketplace and continue to provide significant support as we move towards our goals.”

Ian Wilson, investment manager at IP Group plc, commented: “Healthcare is a fast-moving and challenging industry to be in but what is clear that new technologies will play a large part in achieving the efficiencies sought by public sector organisations in particular.

“Digital Spark has developed a niche product with a proven methodology that can be applied to data collection for patients with all types of conditions. We believe the software has the capability to revolutionise clinical practice to everyone’s benefit and this type of scalable business is exactly the kind that we are here to support.”

For more information on the Finance for Business North East Technology Fund, please visit: www.thenortheasttechnologyfund.com.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sarah Waddington .