Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who also served as U.S. Health and Human Services secretary under President George W. Bush, has invested in growing Milwaukee health care technology company [m]pirik.
The company did not disclose the amount of the investment, but said it was substantial.
[m]pirik, founded in 2010, focuses on creating technology to improve both patient experiences and quality of care in orthopedics. Among its products are Ortho[m]atrix, a tool aimed at simplifying data collection in orthopedic care, and Ori, a real-time procedure update tool for families to consult during a surgery.
The investment from Thompson helped the company close its second round of funding, which totaled more than $2 million. There were about eight investors total, said Jake Bartnicki, business development at [m]pirik. Other investors included BrightStar Wisconsin Foundation, Milwaukee orthopedic surgeons and business leaders.
The company, which has 14 employees, was previously sharing space but moved into its own 3,600-square-foot office Jan. 1 at 240 N. Milwaukee St. in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward. The growth is being driven by increased sales and recognition, both in Wisconsin and around the country, Bartnicki said.
“We grew out of that space with our personnel and we had to find something bigger and … something that fit our needs a little bit better,” he said.
[m]pirik previously raised an angel investment round of $750,000 in 2013. With the most recent influx of funds, [m]pirik plans to continue developing its existing products and launch new products for the orthopedic space, Bartnicki said. One of those new products is a remote monitoring system that could be used by doctors checking in on orthopedic patients post-surgery.
“Gov. Thompson has been a national leader in the evolution of health care, both as a leader in government and through his involvement in the private sector. His investment in our company reaffirms our belief that [m]pirik has developed technology that creates value in the health care marketplace,” said Dr. Joe Kohli, founder and chief executive officer of [m]pirik.
“The health care market will continue to evolve as a result of customer demand, government regulation and changing technology. [m]pirik’s team and technology are well-positioned to create value to patients, health care providers and payers,” Thompson said. “The marketplace will be forced to embrace key changes driven by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid’s insistence that episodic care becomes the new standard, rather than the current fee-for-service model. [m]pirik is well-positioned to deliver technology solutions that help medical professionals better-embrace the necessary continuum of care.”
