Digitally disrupting the healthcare sector
02
Revolutionizing the healthcare sector with digital disruption WRIT TEN BY
L AUR A MULL AN PRODUCED BY
ANDY TURNER
03
w w w.pe t a l m d . com
In the healthcare sector, every minute in invaluable. Offering innovative web solutions for healthcare professionals, PetalMD is helping physicians save valuable time so they can save lives
I
ncredible advancements have continued to disrupt the healthcare sector but, behind the scenes, a lot of administrative work is still done
with the faithful pen and paper. In a sector where time is 04
of the essence, this has created a mammoth hurdle but it is one which Patrice Gilbert hoped to overcome when he founded PetalMD. The idea came to him when he talked to doctors and nurses about their daily grind in the healthcare sector. “I was shocked by their use of technology,” he recalls. “I realized that there was a real lack of technology penetration. In the beginning, I really saw how that, when it came to administrative tasks like scheduling, people were making decisions not based on data but subjective matters and I knew something had to change.” One of the largest drains on time that Gilbert identified was the creation of on-call schedules. Puzzling over Excel sheets and trying to juggle conflicting time constraints of physicians means that creating schedules can cost valuable hours of time — time that could be spent saving lives. By digitizing the entire process, the
05
w w w.pe t a l m d . com
PetalMD cloud platform aims to solve
Combined with its Petal On-Call
this. Comprised of Petal Booking, Petal
module, Gilbert says that physicians
Scheduling and Petal On-Call, this in-
also have access to a hospital dash-
novative platform hopes to facilitate
board, a clever tool that gives staff
patient appointment booking, optimize
easy access to the hospital’s on-call
physician schedule management
list in real-time, on any device. “This
and secure information exchange.
makes sure that all the staff at the
“The first module is physician sched-
06
hospital know who is on–call as well
uling: it allows a group of physicians to
as the physician’s schedule for the
better manage their group schedules,”
clinic. It saves faxes and emails back
explains Gilbert. “The platform allows
and forth and it can improve hospital
physicians to create, manage and share
productivity by making sure that
their schedules more easily in real–time.
everybody who needs to access this
It seems obvious that a group of physi-
information can do so in real–time,”
cians would have this technology today,
he notes.
but most of the time, when we deploy PetalMD we replace pen and paper.”
With its third and final module, Petal Booking, the platform also offers rich
E X E C U T I V E P R OF IL E
Patrice Gilbert Founder and CEO at PetalMD, Patrice Gilbert began his career as a product engineer at Thales Canada and Domosys. His natural leadership and vision led him to a position as Team Leader in Product Development at Taleo, where he moved up the ranks to become Product Manager for Eastern Europe in Germany. In 2009, he returned to Quebec and founded PetalMD, which earned him the title of Young Business Person of the Year for Technology and Research in 2010. Today, his passion for product development drives him towards finding new and innovative technological solutions for healthcare professionals.
“ Comprised of Petal Booking, Petal Scheduling and Petal On–Call, this innovative platform hopes to facilitate patient appointment booking, optimize physician schedule management and secure information exchange” — Patrice Gilbert, Co-founder and CEO of PetalMD
insights into when the hospital is likely to be busiest or less in–demand. “There is no way a hospital can align their medical offering and their investment in equipment if they are not aware of their patient demands,” Gilbert explains. Using the Petal Booking platform, hospitals can automate tasks that are currently done manually like booking appointments or providing further information and reminders. This is then taken one step further thanks to artificial intelligence and data. “We help hospitals and their staff to better understand patient demands and, by using artificial intelligence, we can then forecast future patient demands, such as periods that w w w.pe t a l m d . com
07
08
‘The physician tool provider has close ties with Microsoft — its cloud-based platform is deployed on Microsoft Azure — and this has given PetalMD the global expertise and knowledge needed to become a global operation’
are likely to be busier,” he adds. “It enables physicians to plan their next schedule ahead of time. It’s the holy grail for hospitals because they are able to make decisions based not on thoughts, or subjective matters, but on real data.” The result? More time saved, a better work-life balance, and ultimately better patient care. For physicians, it’s been an invaluable tool. “Many of the hospitals we work with, they initially reach out, because that want to improve the personal life and working life balance for their physicians,” observes Gilbert. “They need to ensure that shifts are
09
distributed evenly within team members so, for example, when you’re working in the emergency department, they can ensure that you’re not doing too many nights in a row because this isn’t good for your health. By having all this data, hospitals can make sure to better serve their physicians. It also improves their quality of life as it’s easier to swap shifts with a few clicks of a button.” For patients, the difference has also been palpable. “From feedback we’ve received, we see that both patients and physicians feel empowered,” Gilbert says proudly. “Patients feel like the clinic or the hospital is listening to w w w.pe t a l m d . com
10
them. They can say that they’d prefer
professionals for clinicians, but that
to have an appointment on a Tuesday
is changing. Today, collaboration with
afternoon and you can more efficiently
clinicians is critical. Sensing this sea
meet that demand. Additionally, patients
change, PetalMD has done just that.
also have greater access to informa-
Indeed, in Gilbert’s eyes, what helps
tion so they understand their health-
PetalMD cut through the noise is the
care journey and they feel empowered.”
fact that it has been developed in col-
Technology has the ability to truly
laboration with physicians, with their
revolutionize the healthcare sector but
demands being placed front and center.
as more and more tools enter the fray
“In the beginning, we worked with the
it can be difficult to determine what
physicians, not just the hospitals, who
is truly useful and what could just be
would buy our software,” Gilbert re-
technology for technology’s sake.
members. “We made sure that the solu-
In the past, healthcare technology
tion would be truly helpful to physicians
was built solely by technologists or IT
and that it would meet their needs. That
2009
Year founded
51-200 Approximate number of employees
CLICK TO WATCH : PETAL SCHEDULING – SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT FOR PHYSICIANS 11 way, they’d want to use it.” By proving
feat but by leveraging global exper-
its value to doctors, PetalMD has been
tise, PetalMD has done so seamlessly.
able to leave a lasting impression on
The physician tool provider has close
the Canadian healthcare sector — and
ties with Microsoft — its cloud-based
it’s proven to be a simple recipe for suc-
platform is deployed on Microsoft
cess. Today, the technology has over
Azure — and this has given PetalMD
48,000 users including 32,000 physi-
the global expertise and knowledge
cians across the country, yet PetalMD’s
needed to become a global operation.
growth isn’t just restricted to the Cana-
“Because our infrastructure and
dian market. It is also making inroads
our data are deployed within Micro-
on the other side of the Atlantic; in just
soft Azure, we can ensure that each
over a year, no less than eight hospitals
time we have a discussion with a
in Switzerland, Belgium and France
new country, we’re compliant with
have adopted the PetalMD platform.
this country’s legislation,” explains
Expanding globally can be a difficult
Gilbert. “This is for us a major partnerw w w.pe t a l m d . com
ship advantage because Microsoft has a worldwide footprint. This allows us to deploy our technology within any country in the world without modification. Additionally, their commercial relationships with our customers are amazing. They already know all the hospitals around the world because, of course, most hospitals are already using Microsoft products as we speak. So, we have relationships with potential customers around the world as well.” As users’ online experiences become more and more seamless, customers 12
are expecting more from their IT platforms. Looking forward, Gilbert says
“ It seems obvious that a group of physicians would have this technology today, but most of the time, when we deploy PetalMD we replace pen and paper” — Patrice Gilbert, Co-founder and CEO of PetalMD
the Canadian firm will continue to invest in technology to ensure it can keep pace with the IT landscape at large. “Thanks to the experience people have with Facebook, LinkedIn, or similar tools, we believe that we can’t lower the bar,” he reflects. “Our IT platform has to be mobile, it has to be accessible on a computer. It has to reflect the highest norm in security, making sure
13
that we can work with hospitals and
countries and, because of all the suc-
patient data. So, we’re always invest-
cess we had in Canada, we’re start-
ing in new technology, and this is very
ing to explore these opportunities.
important for our employees.” On top
In the future, I want to take PetalMD
of this, the company is also eyeing up
across the word. We want to take all
further opportunities abroad, building
the lessons we have learnt and apply
on the world-class reputation it has
them elsewhere to help other coun-
developed in the Canadian market.
tries provide better healthcare.”
“Today, we receive many demands from healthcare professionals in other w w w.pe t a l m d . com
Petal MD 350 Charest E Blvd, 3rd floor, Quebec City, Quebec G1K 3H5 T: 1-888-949-8601 | info@petalmd.com www.petalmd.com