Cera hits 10 million healthcare visits during Covid pandemic

Healthcare start-up Cera has delivered more than 10 million in-person healthcare visits in the UK since the start of the Covid pandemic.

The number of visits have been focused on older and vulnerable people who’ve been hard hit by coronavirus.

The company said early on it spotted the need to support certain cohorts in their own homes throughout the pandemic and so it scaled its operation through innovative technology and adding to its nationwide team of professional carers and nurses.

Cera’s app is used by its team of healthcare workers during their healthcare visits and relies on algorithms. The SmartCare platform is capable of detecting and responding to a deterioration in the condition of patients 30 times faster than traditional methods.

It’s also cutting the length of time it takes to identify and respond to specific symptoms. By monitoring patients’ vital signs and key health data in real time this can happen in just seven hours, rather than the 20 days conventional methods can take, according to the company.

Ben Maruthappu, co-founder and CEO of Cera, said: “At the very start of the Covid-19 outbreak in the UK, we understood the vital role that Cera’s technology and staff could play in communities throughout the country. Our mission is to empower older people to live longer, healthier, better lives in their own homes, and the pandemic has greatly reinforced just how important accessible, quality home care can be.

“Thanks to the dedication of our professional carers and nurses, and the creativity of our technology teams, we’ve been able to support tens of thousands of older people, every day, during a period of unprecedented pressure for the social care sector.”

Cera was launched in December 2015, and rolled out its analytics platform in March 2020 after securing £54 million in new funding. Every day Cera responds to more than 5,000 high risk alerts for patients. It is also delivering healthcare services on a daily basis equivalent in scale to 20 NHS hospitals.

The company’s rapid expansion means they now employ more than 6,000 staff and deliver in excess of 30,000 healthcare visits every day.