North Wilmington-based health technology company Phreesia has acquired Comsort, Inc. doing business as MediFind a service that uses analytics to help patients with rare diseases, cancer and other conditions to find care.
MediFind uses machine learning and proprietary algorithms to continuously review medical information across a wide range of datasets, identifying leading doctors in specific conditions and fields based on their research output, volume of patients, and standing among their peers.
MediFind CEO Patrick Howie founded the company after his brother was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and he experienced firsthand how challenging it was to find experts and treatments.
“I’m incredibly proud that our platform can help sift through the noise and identify doctors at the forefront of their fields,” said Howie, who is now a Vice President of Product Management at Phreesia. “With Phreesia’s size, scale, and experience, we’re now going to be able to reach many more people, which is very exciting.”
According to Rob Weker, a three-time cancer survivor and patient advocate, navigating through confusing and conflicting information to determine a provider’s expertise is no easy task.
“It’s challenging for patients receiving a serious diagnosis,” Weker said. “Quickly finding a doctor with expertise and experience in your condition is critical. Having access to an easy-to-use, patient-oriented tool like MediFind that provides quick, highly reliable fact-based information is invaluable.”
Phreesia has i parallels with MediFind’s mission and focus, said David Linetsky, a Senior Vice President at Phreesia.
“At Phreesia, we’re always thinking about how to arm patients with the right tools and relevant information, whether that’s a message at the point of care to speed a rare-disease diagnosis, a reminder to schedule overdue preventive screening, or educational content about vaccine safety and effectiveness,” Linetsky said. “We welcome our MediFind colleagues as we think about these challenges together.”
Phreesia has more than 1,000 employees and more than $300 million in annual revenue.
