Cincinnati-based TriHealth joined other investors in providing a total of $17 million to Augmedix Inc., a startup that provides Google Glass computerized eyewear to help doctors review patient records and chart examinations.
Augmedix Inc., which is based in San Francisco, claims its service saves doctors an average of 15 hours a week, enabling them to see more patients or spend more time with existing ones. It can reduce charting time by three hours a day, Augmedix said.
A total of $40 million has been raised, and Augmedix said the new round of funding will enable the startup and its investors to scale the Google Glass-powered service across health systems and private clinics nationwide.
Augmedix said it now serves hundreds of primary care doctors, specialists and surgeons who see a total of about 5,000 patients a day.
I previously broke the news that some patients at the new TriHealth Kenwood medical office building might be seen by a doctor using Google Glass eyewear,which would allow the physician to view medical records without having to check a desktop monitor. A medical assistant outside the exam room, called a scribe, would also be able to take notes for the doctor without intruding.
TriHealth piloted the technology with a couple of doctors in Madeira, who relocated their practice to the new building in Kenwood.
“It’s helped our doctors get access to information quickly,” Steve Mombach, vice president of ambulatory services for TriHealth, told me in October. “I think it will go from pilot to standardization very quickly at Kenwood. If the patient is not OK with it, we take off the Google Glass.”
Augmedix claims that forms, health history, lab orders, prescriptions and other tasks can be completed using a remote scribe, verbal notes and commands. The service works with all electronic health records and reportedly increases doctor productivity by more than 30 percent.
“We take our mission to transform health care very seriously and are proud to align our goals and service with some of the most innovative health care systems in the country who share our passion,” Ian Shakil, CEO of Augmedix, said in a statement.
