By Anna Lardinois, Startup Storyteller
According to a study published by the healthcare analytics firm Protenus, over 47 million doses of medication were stolen by doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare workers in 2018. Opioids were involved in 94% of the incidents, with oxycodone, hydrocodone and fentanyl the most common drugs stolen.
Stealing controlled substances prescribed to patients is easier than you might think.
Smaller healthcare facilities, like ambulatory surgery centers and veterinary clinics, often comply with regulations regarding the handling of controlled substances using paper logs and traditional keyed locks. These methods meet the standard of the law, but include few, if any, safeguards against the mishandling of prescription medication.
Milwaukee-based CAREDirect offers an affordable solution for small facilities looking for additional oversight of in-house drug management.
The company, founded in 2016 by the medical equipment manufacturing firm MPE Inc., was spun off in 2021 by MPE Inc.’s former Director of Innovation, Nadder Sahar, along with Kenneth Anderson, Stephan Desmoulin and Matthew Cordio in March 2021.
CAREDirect offers a “smart” medication lockbox that prompts users through several layers of identification before allowing access to prescription drugs. Known as medserve, the box requires users to scan into the system with an identification card, and then enter the prescribed drug, dosage, and patient number before unlocking the compartment where the requested medication is kept.
Once access to the drug is given, the system prompts the user to assess the inventory in the compartment. A notification is immediately sent to facility administrators if there is a discrepancy between the expected inventory and actual inventory is noted by the users.
Facilities that install medserve receive access drug management software that is continuously updated and provides a host of reporting options.
The revenue-generating company is in growth mode. CAREDirect recently appointed Dr. Alex Yampolsky, PharmD, as the company’s Chief Executive Officer. He will assume day-to-day leadership of the company and join CAREDirect’s Board of Directors and ownership group.
Dr. Yampolsky was a key figure in healthcare startups Vytal Health and Telepharm and served in pharmacy leadership positions within the Aurora Healthcare organization.
“Since spinning out from MPE in 2021 and becoming a standalone company, CAREDirect has built a strong foundation and achieved profitable growth,” Cordio said. “We are excited to welcome Alex to the team. He brings a unique background and skills that will help CAREDirect achieve transformational growth and market dominance.”
Yampolsky is eager to begin his role in the organization.
“It’s an exciting time here at CAREDirect! As the number of ambulatory surgery centers continues to grow, we are uniquely positioned to help administrators digitize their processes ensuring an efficient, secure, and compliant medication management workflow,” Yampolsky said.
Cordio, the founder of Startup Wisconsin Week and co-founder of the Wisconsin Startup Coalition, is eager to duplicate the spin-off success his team has had with CAREDirect.
“There are quite a few firms in the Midwest that have divisions which would achieve faster growth with the right management team and capital structure in place,” Cordio said. “I’m on the hunt to identify these opportunities and complete the sort of transformation we have done with CAREDirect again.”
To follow the growth of CAREDirect, connect with the company here.
