Women face bias and disparities in healthcare. Digital tools could help meet their needs.
Ashlee Wisdom left a toxic workplace environment after developing chronic hives.
At the time, Wisdom was also getting her master's in public health at New York University, where she was learning about how social and political factors can affect specific groups' health.
These experiences led her to build Health In Her HUE, a digital health platform that connects women of color to medical providers committed to serving their health needs.
"I had my own experience of seeing how racism impacts your health, and I saw all of this innovation happening in healthcare, but I didn't see anyone at that time building anything that addressed the specific pain points that Black women and women of color tend to have when they are navigating the healthcare system," Wisdom told Business Insider.
Health In Her HUE is part of a surge in femtech, or technology companies that aim to support women's health and wellness. A report published last year by a consulting company called FemHealth Insights found that the sector was rapidly growing, with over 60% of femtech companies founded from 2017 to 2022.
Historically, women's healthcare has been impaired by challenges like bias and a lack of specialized providers. But femtech offers a new way forward — one where connecting with a doctor doesn't require an in-person appointment and female founders are creating digital spaces that mirror the care they want to receive.
Connectivity to close the women's health gap
Increased access to high-speed internet, the expansion of telemedicine, and demand for women-centric healthcare are some factors behind the recent support for femtech platforms and apps.
"In 2020, because we were left with no alternative, there was a massive increase in online services, which created a culture shift for providers and clients," said Smisha Agarwal, the executive director of the Center for Global Digital Health Innovation at Johns Hopkins University.
As a result, the US healthcare sector became less resistant to remote tools like telehealth and medical apps, and patients realized they enjoyed the relative privacy of talking with a provider in their home rather than at a clinic. "These tools can change the power dynamic in a clinical relationship," Agarwal said.
Health In Her HUE says nearly 14,000 women have accounts and use the website to access medical information tailored specifically to women of color; virtual peer-support groups; and medical professionals who deliver healthcare in a way that meets patients' social, cultural, and linguistic needs.
Black women often confront greater difficulties in accessing affordable and quality healthcare, are disproportionately burdened by chronic conditions, and are more likely to experience discrimination in medical settings. "I wanted to build a platform that helps Black women, and women of color more broadly, navigate healthcare and a system that is too often precarious for us," Wisdom said.
Through the platform, users can look up providers by the insurance they take, their specialties, and their ZIP code, and then meet with them in person or virtually, depending on the provider.
In the beginning, Wisdom reached out to providers who seemed aligned with her mission and asked if they would participate in the project. Now providers looking to join can make an account, and once they commit to the company's health-equity pledge, they're added to the directory.
Wisdom said one Health In Her HUE user who felt that other doctors had ignored her symptoms got a diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome after meeting with a Health In Her HUE provider. Another told Wisdom that she drove three hours to meet with a gastroenterologist she found in the directory; she felt that "if a Black GI doctor saw her, they would take her symptoms more seriously," Wisdom said.
For years, healthcare systems weren't designed for women, and there are still gaps in research and treatments for women's health issues. A study published in the Journal of Women's Health in 2021 found that funding from the US National Institutes of Health was more likely to go toward conditions that primarily affect men and less likely to go toward conditions that disproportionately affect women, like migraines and endometriosis.
With this reality in mind, Joanna Strober cofounded Midi Health, a website designed to help people experiencing menopause and perimenopause access specialists. Described as a virtual care clinic, Midi Health allows people to make telehealth appointments with licensed nurse practitioners and doctors specializing in women's midlife health. Strober told BI she started the company after encountering barriers to finding menopause care.
"I also realized that the only way to scale this and give access to all women was to do it virtually," Strober said. "It's about connecting women to excellent care regardless of where they live."
During a virtual appointment, patients can discuss perimenopause and menopause symptoms like hot flashes and brain fog. Interventions can range from lifestyle coaching to prescription medication, and Midi providers can refer patients to in-person treatments when needed. Some insurance plans cover care if the providers are in-network with PPO plans. Strober is focused on scaling insurance coverage so more women can use Midi.
Strober said that as of August, about 100,000 women had used Midi in 2024. Most are between 40 and 50, and the average age is 46.
"It's growing really fast, and women are coming to us in increasing numbers for more issues than we originally expected," Strober said. She added that while Midi isn't intended to be a primary-care clinic, users' interest in speaking with providers about more than hormonal health demonstrates that "there are just not enough providers who are trained in women-centered care."
Strober attributed an increased desire for digital platforms like Midi to improvements in telehealth technology and to women's demands for better care. The relative ease of virtual appointments is also a benefit.
Investing in solutions
A report by Silicon Valley Bank published last year said venture-capital funding for women's health companies had surged by 314% since 2018.
But Strober believes that the industry has just taken off and that founders must convince investors that more money can be made. Midi Health is on its way toward doing that; the company closed a $60 million Series B round in April.
Agarwal said that as more companies enter the healthcare industry, they'll need to consider patient needs beyond health, such as privacy. She argued that minimizing data collection and communicating about data use are imperative.
"Digital solutions do not replace in-person services, but they are a brilliant addition to in-person care," Agarwal added.
Wisdom acknowledged that virtual care isn't a cure-all and told BI that while Health In Her HUE's main goal is connecting women of color to culturally responsive clinicians, she hopes for a future where all providers offer that level of care.
"We don't want Black patients always to feel like they need to be seen by a Black healthcare provider," Wisdom said. "They should feel comfortable and confident knowing that any provider they engage with can provide them with high-quality care."
But for now, Wisdom said, virtual care can be a path toward accessibility. Health In Her HUE raised $3 million in a seed round in January, and Wisdom and her team are hopeful about features they can build to create a space where users know they're getting accurate information from medical providers who understand their experiences. Wisdom and her team plan to create an app and possibly partner with a telehealth company to offer virtual appointments.
"It feels good to build a solution that's useful for my community," Wisdom said. "I'm glad my energy is being used for a mission that deeply resonates with me."
Read the original article on Business Insider
