An investment of £4.3 million (€5 million) has been made by Bertelsmann Investments into Doccla, provider of virtual hospital platforms for telemonitoring, with the capital to be used for expansion in Europe with particular focus on Germany.
The investment follows a round of Series A funding in September 2022, with participants including General Catalyst, KHP Ventures, Giant Ventures, and Speedinvest.
Through Doccla, patients receive a customised ‘Doccla box’ which contains medical measurement devices to track heart rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, blood oxygen levels, blood pressure and other vital signs as required, along with a pre-configured tablet.
Tim Schneider, investment manager for Bertelsmann Investments, notes that that they are “deeply impressed by Doccla’s achievements in the UK, where the company has demonstrated that it can reduce healthcare costs by up to a third while improving patient care. Although healthcare systems differ in Germany and other parts of Europe, we believe that virtual hospital platforms will become a fundamental part of future treatments across Europe. The potential for significant cost reductions and improved patient outcomes is undeniable.”
Doccla’s CEO Dag Larsson comments: “Doccla is scaling rapidly and in order to bolster our position as Europe’s virtual hospital, we require the best people in our corner. Bertelsmann Investments’ deep industrial expertise and remarkable team make them an ideal partner for the next chapter in the Doccla journey. Our European expansion will bring virtual wards – and their benefits – to a whole new level.”
Carsten Coesfeld, CEO of Bertelsmann Investments, adds that they see “great opportunities for the digital healthcare market overall and have invested 90 million Euro in the market since last year”.
In August, we reported how The Health Technology Assessment Innovation Laboratory programme at NICE conducted an early value assessment to support and inform the expansion of virtual ward provision and other intermediate care area, with draft guidance highlighting recommendations on virtual ward technologies including Doccla.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust was a finalist in the HTN Now Awards 2023 in the category of ‘best digital solution for patients’ for their collaboration with Doccla, which saw patients with exacerbating asthma symptoms supported safely at home.
