Medusa Medical preps for new product launch
Medusa Medical Technologies, the Halifax company that builds communication software for paramedics, is developing a new generation of software that customers can use on a range of platforms.
In an interview at the Invest Atlantic conference called Funding Founders, Medusa chair Glen Dexter said the current version of the solution operates off a Windows-based operating system. The new version, which should be launched in February, will allow users to use Medusa software on a range of platforms, including Apple’s iOS platform.
“The biggest cost for our customers now is the hardware in the ambulance,” said Dexter. “They use tablets that typically are Windows-based, and they can cost $3,000 to $4,000 each, and a large customer could have 500 to 1,000 of them.”
He added these tablets are often shared among various teams of paramedics, so the wear and tear on the hardware is substantial. But now the National Health Service in the U.K. is pushing to have tablets distributed to individual paramedics so each is responsible for his or her device and should take better care of it. And London Ambulance, one of Britain’s largest ambulance service, has decided it will now use iPads, which is a huge opportunity for a company that operates on iOS.
Thus, Medusa is updating its technology so it can be used on a range of operating systems. The new product will also offer flexibility to clients, which can have varying needs across their jurisdictions. For example, the emergency medical service in British Columbia is a client, and its staff in Vancouver have to cope with the demands of the opioid crisis in the Downtown Eastside while staff in rural areas have far fewer calls.
Medusa began early in the century with a vision of providing paramedics with a simple technical device to instantly record the details of a patient’s medical condition and transmit them instantly to a hospital or other medical institution.
It was backed with venture capital from three investors: Dexter’s own company Canadian International Capital Inc., Innovacorp, and Technology Venture Corp. of Moncton.
In 2013, the company needed to update its technology, which included components that had become obsolete since the original product had been launched. The goal was to allow the system to input and process more patient care information before a patient is taken to hospital. It added features and offered greater flexibility to paramedics and other emergency medical professionals.
To help finance that revamp, Medusa secured a $2.6 million loan through the Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency’s Atlantic Innovation Fund. Dexter said program helped the company improve sales and Medusa is now in the process of repaying that debt.
“We weren’t in any shape to put up the capital [needed for the rebuild] at the time,” said Dexter. “It wasn’t an easy time for us. That capital was critical to the project. We were able with that new product to pick up some very good customers.”
The company, which employs about 40 people, is still growing with customers in several countries and Canadian provinces. The 2019 revenues will come in about 20 per cent higher than 2018 figure, and the company does not need to raise capital, said Dexter.