NewHavenBIZ

n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | M a y 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 9 Stratford's TapestryHealth pursues unique telehealth/in-person hybrid model of care STARTUPS, INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY T elemedicine and telehealth have become much misused buzzwords for low-cost, no-touch healthcare delivery in the 21st century. e surging number of such compa- nies across the nation — buoyed by the ris- ing demand for remote-care services during the pandemic — promise relatively low-cost "virtual" diagnosis and care prescriptions, without examining or treating the afflicted in the flesh. But to Stratford-based TapestryHealth, telemedicine is a means, not an end. Unlike the bulk of telehealth providers that rely almost exclusively on virtual interactions with patients, Tapestry increasingly provides face-to-face care to get a broader perspective on its patients' well-being. e company offers both primary and urgent care, 24/7 coverage, mul- tiple medical special- ties, remote or on-site clinicians and one-but- ton technology on its proprietary platform. "Technology is too oen used to replace human interactions," said Dr. David Chess, CEO and co-found- er of TapestryHealth. "We see things very differently. We use technology to bring our clinicians to the patient's bedside to deepen the personal relationships between the phy- sician, the patient and the facility staff. is clinically-respectful approach changes the quality and dignity of peoples' lives." Chess' co-founder and co-principal, At a glance Company: TapestryHealth Industry: Healthcare technology Top Executive: Dr. David Chess, Founder, President and Chief Medical Officer HQ: 99 Hawley Lane, Stratford Company Website: https://www. tapestryhealth.com/ Phone Number: 203-666-8145 By Michael C. Bingham former nursing home administrator Mordy Eisenberg, describes the company as a mul- tispecialty medical practice group. It primarily examines and treats patients in nursing homes and assisted-living facil- ities and uses telemedicine in many cases to "get into some very remote or otherwise underserved areas or times of day." "e words 'telehealth' and 'telemed- icine' have kind of been bandied about," said Eisenberg, who holds the title of chief growth officer. "We don't see telemedicine as a service; we see telemedicine as a deliv- ery method." Chess and Eisenberg co-founded what was then known as Tapestry Telehealth in Jan. 2018 out of the former's Stratford home. Chess had previously created a company called TripleCare Inc., which provided telemedicine services for nursing homes before it was acquired in 2018 by Pittsburgh-based Curavi Health Inc. "at company and every company that followed in this space really focused on an aer-hours, urgent-care model, where if you need help you can call them and they can see your patient, but it's generally a dif- ferent clinician every time you call — the 'doc-in-a-box' model," Eisenberg explains. Eisenberg says that during Chess' latter days at TripleCare he wanted to focus on a prima- ry-care rather than urgent-care model. "at model allows us to get paid for our visits directly by the insurer, whether it's Medi- care or Medicaid, as opposed to charging the nursing home," Eisenberg explains. "It's a very different business model." Last June the pair changed the company's name from Tapestry Telehealth to Tapestry- Health to reflect the broader definition of its mission. "We didn't want to get pigeonholed as [solely] a telemedicine company," Eisenberg explains. Growing footprint e marketplace has responded to Tapes- tryHealth's unique business model. In Feb. 2020, the company raised more than $2.5 million in a Series A financing round — according to a filing with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission — attracting capital investors led by New York City-based Sopris Capital to help lubricate its path to profitability. It has also wooed new board members, including Mark Hirschhorn, former CFO and chief operating officer of Teladoc Health, a global telemedicine company with annual revenues in excess of $400 million. Sopris Capital partner Abinav Sankar says TapestryHealth is unlike anyone else operating in this space, noting its broad product offerings and delivery of custom- ized services around the country — and the fact that it offers both virtual and in-person patient visits. e company is "getting vitally needed medical care to the people who need it most," Sankar said. As of March, Tapestry had done more than 40,000 face-to-face, in-person bedside evaluations and treatments, and "we are adding significantly to that number every month," says Eisenberg. e company is eyeing a nationwide footprint and today offers services in 32 states. "Basically, we've created a whole new service category in the skilled nursing industry," Eisenberg adds. Unlike many skilled nursing facility ven- dors that rely on independent contractors, Tapestry employs all its providers. "at really helps us [ensure] the quality of what we're doing," Eisenberg said. "At this point today we have over 100 employees." ough the company is not yet operationally profitable, "We've probably quadrupled in size this year, and we hope to do a multiple of that as well [in 2021]. Our goal is to be in 700 skilled nursing facilities two years from now. We're already servicing about 240 under contract," Eisenberg said. "We're really managing a lot of care there," he added. n Dr. David Chess Mordy Eisenberg TapestryHealth's unique business model brings its providers physically and digitally to the bedside of nursing home patients. A patient receives care remotely from Dr. David Chess. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

• Cover