EarlySense has gained $20 million in financing to support its work to help bring smart sensors and analysis to patient monitoring in healthcare institutions as well as in the home. Strategic investor Samsung Ventures led the round with a $10 million commitment, demonstrating the growing interest from major corporations in making this sort of technology widely available.
The EarlySense Patient Safety solution continuously monitors heart rate, respiratory rate and motion to provide early detection of patient deterioration. It also aims at preventing patient falls and pressure ulcers by monitoring when patients leave their bed and by facilitating turn protocols. It includes a sensor that is placed under the mattress and connects to a system that analyzes the data.
"We invest in companies that are paving the way for their respective industries. EarlySense has developed and brought to market a unique, breakthrough technology that will improve the lives of consumers through health parameter sensing and monitoring," Gonzalo Martinez de Azagra, head of Samsung Ventures Israel, said in a statement. "This technology, based on algorithms, analytics, and smart health/IT capabilities, has been commercialized in the professional healthcare market over the past few years. This has built powerful clinical and market validation."
Most recently, the EarlySense Chair Sensor Solution, which monitors heart rate, respiratory rate and movement via a contact-free sensor, was cleared by the FDA in July. The company's Bedside Monitor was cleared by the agency in January.
The startup already has a partnership with patient-monitoring company Welch Allyn, and it expects to use the financing to expand into additional markets and accelerate adoption. Existing investors participating in the latest round for the Israeli startup include Pitango Venture Capital, Welch Allyn, JK&B, Proseed and Noaber.
"We integrated the EarlySense technology into our CVSM [Connex Vital Signs Monitor] Platform earlier this year, with excellent market response," Welch Allyn CEO Stephen Meyer said in a statement. "We look forward to continuing our partnership with EarlySense in our collective efforts of improving patient care and outcomes in every bed and in every professional healthcare environment."
- here is the release