If we’ve learned anything from COVID-19 it should be how quickly everything we’ve worked for can come unravelled. Some parallels are obvious—economically, the world’s in the shitter; politically, we’re more divided than ever; socially, we’re all afraid of each other—but also interpersonally. Part of my quarantine routine included checking in with vulnerable friends and family, and the occasional nine-hour negotiation session to figuratively bring some back from the ledge.
Honestly, it was a lot. But we do it.
For those savvy with such things it also represents an underserved market niche. During the pandemic, CloudMD Software and Services (DOC.V) pushed their telemedicine app, promoting social distancing by meeting your doctor from miles away. It was a great idea then and it’s a great idea now, but there’s only so much you can do on the physical side of medicine and we need to stop thinking of the mind as somehow separate from the body.
When COVID-19 turns around come flu season to make another pass and we’re locked down in our houses, it’d be best if we came in having learned the lessons of the past. CloudMD has got that part covered.
We initially wrote about the pending acquisition back in July, but some points are worth reiterating:
“The COVID-19 pandemic is the most serious public health emergency of our lifetime and it has further deepened the mental health crisis we were already facing. Recent data tells us that over 56 per cent of Canadians said the pandemic is having a negative impact on their mental health, with social isolation being the top contributing factor,” said Dr. Essam Hamza, chief executive officer of CloudMD.
Snapclarity adds a mental health dimension to their telemedicine offerings, so maybe instead of having me out on my balcony trying to help my friend in the middle of COVID-19 for nine hours, we can maybe have a professional do it.
The addition is an on-demand digital platform providing an assessment for mental health disorders, which results in a personalized care plan, online access to resources and a clinical health team, as well as the ability to match the patient with the right therapist. The platform is commonly used by employers, individuals, therapists and insurers to blend intervention with technology, artificial intelligence and human interaction in support of a variety of mental health issues.
Clinician designed digital tools, grounded in evidence-based practices, have been proven to positively impact outcomes. The acquisition makes CloudMD one of the only telemedicine companies that offers both primary care solutions, such as access to doctors and medical advice, with digital mental health care.
CloudMD provides whole-person continuity of care and now that they’ve closed the Snapclarity acquisition, they have empowered the patient with answers, direction and resources for their pressing physical and mental health support. Medicine has been moving away from a siloed approach to mental and physical health for some time with an increasing recognition that the two are interconnected.
The terms of the agreement include:
“Total consideration payable by the company in connection with the acquisition is $3.35-million, subject to certain holdbacks, payable as up to $975,000 in cash and up to $2,375,000 in common shares of the company to be issued at 70 cents per payment share. All payment shares issued pursuant to the acquisition will be subject to a two-year release. Additionally, subject to the achievement of certain performance conditions in 2021 and 2022, Snapclarity may earn an additional $3.65-million in equity-based consideration.”
Singularity will combine with another company subsidiary and when the combination is complete, both companies will be considered subsidiaries of CloudMD, subject of course, to all the usual sets of approvals.
—Joseph Morton
