December 3, 2024
MedInclude partners with Grand River Hospital to improve patient communication with AI
Velocity startup founded by Waterloo alum creates a more inclusive standard of care in patient communication
A Velocity health-tech startup focused on improving health-care communication has announced an exciting new partnership with Grand River Hospital (GRH) to address communication challenges within the hospital’s Renal Program. This collaboration — a pre-commercialization project spanning three months — will leverage MedInclude’s artificial intelligence (AI) platform to enhance patient engagement and streamline interactions between health-care providers and patients.
Founder and CEO of MedInclude, Seun Adetunji (MBET ’24), designed the platform to tackle misunderstanding in patient-provider communication. For many patients, especially those with limited proficiency in English, receiving and retaining medical instructions can present a significant barrier to effective care.
MedInclude’s solution simplifies complex medical jargon, helping to enhance understanding of care instructions for patients from diverse backgrounds.
Health-care providers will be able to upload medical documents and educational materials directly into the platform, which can then be simplified and translated into multiple languages. A forthcoming voice-to-text and text-to-voice feature will further improve accessibility, allowing health-care providers to input information through verbal communication.
“The collaboration with MedInclude reflects our commitment to supporting local innovation and advancing health-care solutions that address real-world challenges,” says Carla Girolametto, Integrated Director of Innovation and Research at Grand River and St. Mary’s General Hospital. “This pre-commercialization project aims to bridge communication gaps for patients with limited English proficiency, fostering inclusivity while testing a promising tool to enhance patient understanding, improve care outcomes, and support a more efficient health-care system.”
Adetunji with Carla Girolametto, Integrated Director of Innovation and Research at Grand River and St. Mary’s General Hospital.
The partnership with GRH comes after months of collaboration and dialogue between MedInclude and the hospital’s innovation office. Following several successful pilot programs with organizations like KidsAbility, MedInclude refined its platform to better meet the needs of diverse patient populations. The Renal Program was identified as an ideal starting point for the pilot project due to its diverse group of patients with complex needs.
MedInclude’s platform ensures that medical information is accessible to all patients, regardless of their background, literacy or language skills. By providing a clear and transparent communication channel, MedInclude empowers patients to make informed decisions about their care, while enabling health-care providers to deliver more efficient, patient-centered care.
"Effective communication between patients and health-care providers is crucial for high-quality care,” says Moazam Khan, director of Velocity health. “By bridging language barriers, MedInclude and health-care providers are setting a new standard for patient-centered care, ensuring more inclusive and compassionate health care."
Adetunji and the MedInclude team are actively looking to engage with other hospitals and health-care organizations to expand their reach and improve communication across Canada. The company’s technology is prepared to become part of the standard of care in hospitals nationwide, addressing the critical issues of health-care accessibility, efficiency and equity.
“We all know that technology is ever progressing and very few sectors, if any, are not already incorporating it into the way they provide service and care,” Adetunji says. “For health-care organizations, it is crucial that administrators and decision makers actively support and integrate innovations like MedInclude into the future of patient care. I think the trend will continue to grow, and we’ll see more startups and innovative solutions becoming part of existing systems in health-care organizations.”
MedInclude’s work with GRH marks the first step in a broader movement to integrate innovative technologies into health-care systems. As the health-care sector continues to evolve, tools like MedInclude will play a pivotal role in creating a more inclusive, patient-centred care model that benefits both patients and providers alike.
