Canadian startup set to bring standardized health info to masses

THINK RESEARCH GETS BOOST FROM PANDEMIC

Standardizing the world's health knowledge so that everyone can get the best care possible seems like a lofty mission for one company, but if any Canadian health-tech startup can make it happen, Think Research Corp. may be the safest bet.

Already backed by private investors for some $50 million, the Toronto-based company went public in December as pandemic-inspired interest in digital health solutions continues to soar.

“2020 was a tipping point … and this became a bit of a moment for us to shine,” said chief executive Sachin Aggarwal, who admits that joining the Toronto Stock Exchange wasn't on the radar pre-COVID-19. “While we were growing at a good pace, there's nothing quite like being in the public markets to be able to raise capital and issue stocks for the purpose of acquisitions.”

The boom in interest and funding in health innovation shouldn't be surprising with virtual health care finally taking off, largely due to the pandemic.

Total funding in the sector hit US$9.2 billion in the first half of 2020, up nearly 19 per cent from the same period a year earlier, according to StartUp Health's 2020 Midyear Funding Report. The report also showed Toronto is one of the top 10 most-funded cities for health innovation outside the United States, and second only to London in terms of the number of deals made.

But though digital health is coming on strong now, Think Research was launched in 2006 as one of the first Canadian startups in the space. It now offers a number of software tools and services for clinicians, including a virtual care platform, applications for providing electronic referrals, digital support tools geared to senior care and digitized order sets based on the latest evidence-based, clinical knowledge.

Having up-to-date clinical content is becoming a crucial ask among healthcare institutions because treatment protocols around COVID-19 are constantly changing.

Before going public, Think Research was already providing a suite of digital health solutions to help clinicians standardize processes in more than 2,200 healthcare facilities in North America and the European Union — and improving care for millions of patients each year in the process.

Now, Think Research is “hyper focused” on having several clinical service delivery organizations in its network using every bit of the company's software from end to end.

The goal, Aggarwal said, is to “prove how high-quality standardized care can be used to improve outcomes for patients, and also how it delivers better financial metrics for shareholders.”

To that end, Think Research acquired Toronto-based HealthCare Plus clinics last year, which will be using its VirtualCare platform to serve an existing base of 100,000 patients, plus grow remote care services across the country.

Another more recent acquisition is Clinic 360, a cosmetic and elective surgery clinic in Toronto, with more than a dozen specialists and surgeons.

“Given the fact that elective surgeries were basically shut down during COVID and will be moving to the private sector, this will be a great place for us to showcase our stuff,” Aggarwal said, hinting at more acquisitions coming in 2021.

Think Research also partnered with the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) to provide its virtual platform to members across the province, thereby assisting in the delivery of mental health treatment during the start of the pandemic last March.

Past OPA president and neuropsychologist Dr. Sylvain Roy, who helped facilitate the software integration, said using the platform in their clinical practices has helped traditional techaverse providers change their mindset around virtual care. Before the pandemic, he noted that 25 per cent of Ontario psychologists were using these services, compared to at least 85 per cent today.

“Now that we've experienced it and are comfortable and see the benefits, there's no way we'll go back (to traditional ways), especially for what can be done virtually,” Roy said.

There has been an explosion of virtual care vendors since the pandemic started, but he said most lack the maturity of Think Research and aren't always designed with the clinician in mind.

The work that eventually turned into Think Research was started by company founder Dr. Chris O'Connor in his day-to-day intensive care unit practice at Ontario's Trillium Health Partners, which has been a big advantage in garnering market trust.

“We're a startup, but we were actually created in the public health system,” Aggarwal said.

Although O'Connor retired from the company in December, he leaves Think Research in capable hands. Aggarwal, who has an MBA and a law degree, also worked in politics, including a role as deputy chief of staff for the office of the leader of the Opposition Michael Ignatieff.

“That's important only because it really helped me cut my teeth in understanding how government makes decisions, and, in this role, fundamentally, the buyer is government,” he said.

Aggarwal is also backed by a powerhouse board of directors who include Kirstine Stewart, an executive committee member of the World Economic Forum and former Canadian Broadcasting Corp. head, and Abe Schwartz, a serial healthtech entrepreneur with some 45 years of experience.

Even with today's digital health market boom showing no signs of slowing, Aggarwal said he's not too concerned about competitors, at least not in Canada.

“Not only is there a huge knowledge barrier to entry, you then have to get your protocols into the healthcare system,” he said. “We have thousands of protocols used in different parts of the health-care system that have taken a huge amount of time and money and effort.”

Once you do get the size and scale, it also becomes “a very sticky business,” he adds. “You can layer on new products and services and start to demonstrate some real value to your clients.”

Still Aggarwal expects there will be dozens of startups developing innovative technologies at the margins of the knowledge-based care market.

“That could mean developing an interesting AIbased protocol or algorithm to help decision-making in one specific area of care,” he said. “There's no way in the world of health-care knowledge that we can be all things to all people.”

Where he hopes Think Research can be a virtual health ally is in helping these startups garner the trust and access the distribution needed to get their technologies in use.

“This is where we think size and scale and having access to capital matters,” Aggarwal said. “We can be an aggregator and partner for many of them.”

PETER J. THOMPSON / FINANCIAL POST “We have thousands of protocols used in different parts of the health-care system that have taken a huge amount of time and money and effort,” says Think Research chief executive Sachin Aggarwal.