Syringe and Pills on Blue Background

(Photo : Miguel Á. Padriñán)

There's dramatic change coming to healthcare.

So states Reeve Benaron, the founder and co-CEO of the health tech company Intrivo. Benaron sees an opportunity to innovate and drive efficiencies throughout the healthcare industry.

Benaron likens the changes likely to come to healthcare to those that are reshaping other industries. Using technology to drive change will bring profound changes to healthcare, he believes. Those changes will lead to better outcomes for patients and profits for companies that embrace and accelerate change.

"There is a healthcare revolution happening, whether we like it or not," he said. "Just like there's a finance revolution."

Blockchain and crypto have made the financial system more efficient, upending systems that have been in place for half a century. Old, outdated financial systems are hindering progress, Benaron said, and technologies are driving transformational change.

"I think healthcare is the same way. I think that the problem with the healthcare system now is that people are not going for regular checkups, especially since COVID, they're not going for annual physicals," Benaron said.

The lack of preventative care has worsened since the pandemic. Women are skipping or delaying mammograms, and men are not getting regular colonoscopies.

The delays and reluctance are having major adverse effects on individuals and the healthcare system writ large.

"It's hindering the ability to have triage in healthcare," Benaron said. "Triage is the ability to quickly diagnose a person and deal with them. Whatever is wrong with the person, it's being able to treat them quickly."

Into that gap comes Intrivo.

New Business at the Intersection of Health and Technology

Reeve Benaron became interested in healthcare in 2000, when his mother was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She had successful surgery and is doing well. However, the experience caused Benaron to begin considering why some people age differently and live longer.

"What is it about the human body that causes certain cells to break down earlier and cells to break down later in life? How can we extend that?" he said. "Aside from the obvious of helping people heal when they're sick, how can we help people live happier, longer lives? It became something that was very interesting to me, and I already loved technology."

He founded Intrivo in February 2020, in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Foreshadowing the worldwide catastrophe, Benaron realized that testing would be critical in combatting the spread of the viral illness.

He and cofounder Ron Gutman found early success in the development and distribution of a rapid COVID-19 test. Yet even in the earliest days of the pandemic, he realized technology would be critical in overcoming inherent human tendencies.

"The hardest thing that we have to do is get people's attention," he said. "This provided an opportunity to get not only the entire population, for them to need to test but to want a test. It's rare. Usually, you're fighting for people's attention against social media against all kinds of other distractions."

Reeve Benaron on the Importance of Data and Public Health

Weather forecasting relies heavily on data, providing information and predictive models. This information helps not only news meteorologists but also in preparing for and combatting natural disasters before they occur.

The same is true in dealing with public health issues like a pandemic, according to Reeve Benaron.

"You need that data in order to predict outbreaks. I think COVID-19 is not going to be the last infectious disease that is faced by humanity," he said. "I think what we have to do is stop it at the root of the problem, stop it in its tracks. I think that data-driven digital diagnostics enable us to go to the root of it, stop it in its tracks and communicate to a much wider audience than you would otherwise."

Data scientists and epidemiologists use that data-based approach to predict and segment for targeted predictions and treatments for smaller populations.

"The heart of data-driven digital diagnostics is the ability to take that data, segment it on an individual level, and treat the person," he said. "Once the person knows what's wrong with them, treat the person and then notify on a wider scale what it is that's wrong to stop the spread from going any further."

Mission-Driven Focus Behind Intrivo, Notes Founder Reeve Benaron

Intrivo met those challenges head-on during COVID-19 with technical solutions to help reduce the spread. It was the first company to be able to deliver COVID-19 tests anywhere in the United States in 15 minutes, he said.

Intrivo's mission is focused on helping others. He cites a powerful pandemic problem Intrivo solved as an example.

"We were the ones that were able to actually deliver tests to nursing homes in New York. We saved thousands of lives doing that," he said. "We were able to deliver tests into war zones where nobody even thought about tests into war zones. We were able to do things that I believe, and I know, saved so many lives.

"To me, that's the most gratifying feeling of all. The heart and the essence of what we do is to do good," Benaron said. "We want to make the healthcare experience fun, not something that you dread doing."

Reeve Benaron has long worked for and developed innovative companies. He co-founded and is chair of AUDIENCEX, an omnichannel marketing tech provider. He previously was a partner at AX Venture Partners, which develops industry leaders using unique marketing approaches.

The Future of Healthcare: Personalization and Integration

Reeve Benaron believes that there is a bright future for change in healthcare.

It begins with a foundational mindset change - from reactive to proactive care, he said.

"At the heart of what I'm passionate about is moving into proactive healthcare. You can't just move into proactive healthcare by talking about it. You have to implement initiatives, such as test-to-treat [and] making people aware," Benaron said. "What we try to do and what we want to do is make people aware of what's needed and what's wrong with them. If people are aware of it, do good and feel good. Then I think you're going to see people start to make positive changes in their life."

One major component will be the development of more personalized healthcare. Advances in genomic mapping and testing provide people with more information about their makeup and predisposition for certain illnesses.

With individualized information, Benaron believes, people can have more confidence in the steps they need to take to lead healthier and longer lives. That's where technology comes in. Companies will take that information and integrate it with comprehensive testing, treatment and lifestyle recommendations that help patients thrive.

Technology will also allow more patients to be treated at home. Care programs will evolve, allowing you to test and treat more comfortably and at less cost, both for patients and payors.

"At the heart of what we do is about making the healthcare experience delightful for people," Reeve Benaron said. "My mission is to be one of the pioneers of real longevity and digital health that can help advance people and help advance humanity."