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Original Article: https://www.americaninno.com/northtexas/news-northtexas/fieldmed-launches-telehealth-feature-for-first-responders/

Health care workers and first responders have found themselves at the frontlines in the fight to slow the spread of the coronavirus. And in a time when social distancing is helping to relieve overburdened hospitals and flatten the curve, telehealth has become an important tool.

FieldMed, a health software startup created by local first responders for first responders, is launching a new telehealth feature to its platform, which will allow paramedics and in-home health care workers to connect their patients to doctors remotely. And the company is offering to defer or waive payments for 90 days to qualifying organizations.

“In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, our team got to work to identify how we can best help during this time of crisis,” said Daniel Dura, CEO and co-founder of FieldMed, in a prepared statement. “We activated quickly to build a solution within our existing FieldMed community health platform to not only help those who are sick, but also to better serve healthcare professionals working to treat them.”

McKinney-based FieldMed was founded with a partnership between Dura and former first responder Daniel Frey, who help the City of McKinney to roll out its community health program. The startup took that idea and moved it into the digital sphere. FieldMed’s software keeps track of patient data and trends, like vitals, environmental risks, as well as food and shelter needs. The goal is to provide first responders with the information they need to help each specific patient, while providing better care and helping hospitals by reducing lost hours and other resources.

The addition of the telehealth feature will allow the platform’s users to continue to connect and monitor patients, while not having to be physically present. In the region, a number of first responders have contracted the virus. In a national effort to bring telehealth to the forefront of the fight against the virus, nearly $200 million was included in the recently passed CARES Act stimulus.

“Healthcare providers and paramedics are on the front lines of this pandemic, and this new feature can help to bridge the gap of care for patients while reducing the risk of exposure and overcrowding in hospitals,” Frey said in a prepared statement.

FieldMed joins a number of North Texas startups and entrepreneurs helping out in the telehealth space. Last month, Plano-based iDocsWeb and VitalTech announced plans to offer some of their respective telehealth services for free.

To help connect the telehealth feature to its core mission, FieldMed has included HIPAA-compliant data capture specifically for coronavirus screening into the software, as well as full integration with other health care reporting systems. The company said the new features will allow care providers ways to treat patients’ needs in isolation and allow paramedics and in-home providers to connect directly with physicians to cut down hospital visits.

“As a company, we understand that this is a difficult time for many, but particularly those in the healthcare industry,” said Randy Barker, FieldMed co-founder, in a prepared statement.

FieldMed was launched by Plano-based parent company Graphium Health, which focuses on managing anesthesia workflow practices, in October 2019, billing itself as the first patient-focused software for community health. FieldMed’s parent company Graphium Health was founded in 2010 and has about 15 employees. It focuses on software that captures data and improves reporting and billing for anesthesiologists. Since launching, it has installed its software in more than 250 facilities in more than 30 states.

“We are committed to working alongside paramedics and providers to ensure they have everything they need to effectively use this software and deliver better patient care,” Barker said.

Original Article: https://www.americaninno.com/northtexas/news-northtexas/fieldmed-launches-telehealth-feature-for-first-responders/