Surgical collaboration app Chiefy has raised $4.2m in a seed funding round to improve surgical quality by enabling virtual huddles among surgical teams. The chat and communication platform integrates with hospitals’ EHRs and allows participants to hold meetings before an operation. The investment will be used to speed up product development and find new health systems and hospital customers. The market for digital surgery solutions is growing, including virtual reality technology for surgical training and assessment and artificial intelligence for surgical decision-making.
A $4.2 million seed fundraising round for Chiefy, an app for surgical teamwork, was just closed. In the purchase, which was led by LionBird, there were also participations from Nina Capital and Emerge Ventures. The surgical team can perform a virtual pre-operation briefing using the startup’s chat and communication platform in place of conventional in-person meetings or reliance on texts, emails, and phone calls. The app aims to improve surgical quality by enabling more providers to participate in short meetings, known as huddles, which improve patient care and surgeon satisfaction. The company plans to use the funds to speed up product development and reach new health systems and hospital customers.
Surgical Collaboration Apps
Chiefy is one of several companies in the digital surgery space offering technology solutions for surgical teams. Proximie is another such company that allows surgeons to record procedures and enables outside surgeons to virtually “scrub in.” The company also pitches its platform as a way to improve surgical quality. In 2021, Proximie raised $80 million and was recently selected for Amazon Web Services’ latest healthcare accelerator program.
PrecisionOS is another company that offers virtual reality technology for surgical training and planning. Its InVisionOS tool received FDA 510(k) clearance in late 2021, creating a 3D reconstruction of a patient’s CT scan that can be viewed and manipulated before the operation.
Several companies aim to use virtual reality for surgical training and assessment, such as Osso VR and Fundamental VR. Osso VR raised $66 million last year, while FundamentalVR raised $20 million in 2022.
Chiefy’s Value Proposition
Huddles, which are essential to enhancing patient care and surgeon satisfaction, are the foundation of Chiefy’s method, making it distinctive. Before the procedure, the surgical team can communicate information and go over the surgical game plan in huddles. Yet they are frequently time-consuming and challenging to arrange, even though they have been demonstrated to increase surgical quality.
The surgical team can perform asynchronous huddles thanks to Chiefy’s communication technology, allowing team members to join as they see fit. This strategy might expand the pool of clinicians who can take part, improving patient outcomes.
The app is designed to be user-friendly and intuitive. The user interface is clean and straightforward, and the platform is easy to navigate. The app integrates with the hospital’s electronic health record (EHR) system, which means that the surgical team can access patient information quickly and easily.
Chiefy’s technology is designed to build a culture of trust among the surgical team. Trust is essential in healthcare, and the app’s communication platform can help build it by enabling the surgical team to share information and collaborate more effectively.
The Future of Digital Surgery
The market for digital surgery solutions is growing rapidly, and Chiefy is just one example of how technology can improve surgical quality. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of digital solutions in healthcare, and this trend is likely to continue in the coming years.
Virtual reality technology is becoming increasingly popular in surgical training and assessment. These technologies can provide a safe and controlled environment for trainees to learn and practice surgical techniques. They can also be used to assess surgical competency and identify areas for improvement.
Artificial intelligence is another technology that has the potential to transform surgery. AI algorithms can analyze large amounts of data quickly and accurately, which can help surgeons make better decisions. For example, AI algorithms can analyze CT scans and identify areas of concern that the surgeon might miss.
