5 European Healthcare Startups Thriving Amidst the Pandemic

While a global quarantine became fatal for many businesses, industry sectors like mHealth, self-care, and wellness experience increased attention because of COVID-19. Today we are taking a closer look at MedTech startups that managed to use the pandemic as a growth booster, bringing a new level of value in the digital market.

1. Kry

Kry is a Sweden-based telehealth platform that lets users book online appointments with clinicians and receive the needed care right on their website. It works by registering healthcare practitioners on the platform and then distributing consultation requests from patients based on the availability of doctors in their area. Depending on the patient’s condition, Kry also offers the option to visit one of their healthcare centers for a physical check-up.

At the beginning of 2020, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s Teachers’ Innovation Platform led a funding round for Kry, resulting in $155 million raised. The initial objective of the Swedish startup was to continue expanding its services to more European markets. However, the global pandemic made the company shift to local healthcare, where they assisted with PCR test delivery and other healthcare services directly related to COVID-19.

2. Dacadoo

Dacadoo is a MedTech company founded in Switzerland. Its two primary aims are to promote a healthy lifestyle and self-care in patients, as well as to bring high technology to the healthcare industry. For personal use, Dacadoo promotes self-assessment practices like questionnaires and self-examination instructions using a 0-1000 health score as a form of motivation. For healthcare providers, they offer access to their technology components through a RESTful API with customization features.

In the summer of 2020, Dacadoo started a partnership with Sompo Himawari Life Insurance ― an industry-leading insurance provider in the Asia-Pacific region. Together, they are launching a MedTech application utilizing the Dacadoo’s health score system for people who have limited access to healthcare facilities because of the quarantine. In general, the Dacadoo startup raised more than $70 million as investments.

3. Myo

Myo is a Germany-based communication platform developed specifically for nursing homes and personal care facilities. The platform helps nursing home patients stay connected with their families regardless of distance. Due to the fact many people who need personal care have trouble texting and calling their relatives on their own, Myo also provides an application for the hospitality staff allowing them to send timely updates to families. The platform provides the highest level of data safety which is proven with an ISO-27001 certificate for information security management systems.

Myo’s team quickly reacted to changes in the hospitality industry forced by the global pandemic. Since many people got separated from their families because of strict self-isolation and quarantine restrictions, Myo started offering their mobile app for free to those who couldn’t visit their loved ones because of COVID-19. They also managed to expand their services having partnered with the two biggest German medical service providers, AGAPLESION and carpe diem.

4. Psious

Psious is a truly innovative software solution that applies Virtual Reality (VR) technology to treat anxiety and phobias. It is based and operated in Spain. Their services are known and used across 60+ countries and by thousands of psychotherapists as a part of their protocols. Psious continues creating more and more new virtual environments for different conditions. As for now, you can search through 70 of these, including environments for OCD, generalized anxiety, panic attacks, etc.

In July’20, Psious startup was acknowledged as an effective digital tool to treat Coronavirus-related stress and anxiety in patients. Such a complaint became massive since the beginning of the year and reached its peak in parallel with the first wave COVID-19 pandemic.

5. Doctolib

Doctolib is a French telehealth platform that organizes easy access to quality healthcare services for patients. In 2019, it raised $170 million funding making it to the “next European unicorn” title with an estimated value of over $1 billion.

Joining a fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Doctolib gave access to their high-quality video conferencing tools to all the French clinicians adding to the timely healthcare services on the distance. This helped the French government to decrease the virus transmission in healthcare facilities and helped patients remain calm knowing they can receive a consultation in the comfort of their homes if needed.