Outset Medical raises $76.5m to scale its DIY dialysis product
San Jose healthcare technology firm Outset Medical has closed a $76.5m series C round, led by new investor T. Rowe Price Associates, with contributions from Fidelity Research and Management Company and Warburg Pincus, among others.The firm has developed a device known as Tablo hemodialysis, which utilises a first-of-its-kind tablet app to help dialysis patients set up their own treatment under clinical supervision. The new funding will help Outset  "expand the US launch of its device into existing dialysis clinics, new dialysis clinics and hospitals," according to CEO Leslie Trigg. The firm hopes its technology will eventually be used to treat patients at home. 
Outset Medical, a San Jose medical device company that wants to disrupt the dialysis service model, has closed a $76.5 million Series C round. The funding will be used to support the expansion of sales and marketing of its FDA-cleared Tablo hemodialysis device.

It will also go towards scaling the company’s manufacturing operations, add muscle to its sales and service field team, and expand the U.S. launch of its device into existing dialysis clinics, new dialysis clinics and hospitals, Outset Medical CEO Leslie Trigg noted in an emailed response to questions.

The point of the Tablo device is that it be simple enough for patients to set up their own treatment but with the support of clinic staff. The self-serve option helps patients to take more control of their treatment, according to the company. It also reduces costs. The long-term goal is to get to a point where patients can do dialysis at home and no longer need to rely on clinics.

The round was led by a new investor, T. Rowe Price Associates. Other existing investors that took part in the round included Fidelity Research and Management Company, Partner Fund Management LP, Warburg Pincus, Perceptive Advisors and The Vertical Group, according to a company announcement. To date, Trigg said the company has raised $185.5 million.

Dialysis clinic customers tend to be those with kidney failure and similar diseases They go three times a week, for up to five hours at a time.

Asked what’s on Outset Medical’s to do list for the year, Trigg said it would work to establish self-service devices within dialysis clinics so that individuals could operate the devices themselves but have providers on hand to address any problems. Although the company declined to name partners it’s working with, Trigg said partnerships with different dialysis providers have helped demonstrate that the concept of in-center self-care works for a large portion of dialysis patients.

“We’ve now successfully trained a broad cross-section of patients on the system using a first-of-its-kind tablet-based app that is unique to Tablo. What we’ve found is that patient training on Tablo is measured in hours, not months so we’re now confident clinics can train self-care patients on Tablo efficiently,” Trigg said. “We’ve collected data on how long it takes patients to set up for a Tablo treatment on their own and confirmed that patients of all ages can predictably set it up quickly in about 10-15 minutes.”

Outset Medical also wants to expand Tablo’s FDA clearance to include the use of the system at home, which will open a fourth large market opportunity for Tablo in the U.S., Trigg noted.

In a 2015 talk at the Health 2.0 conference, Trigg said she wanted dialysis patients to have access to their own data such as urea clearance, fluid removal, what time they had dialysis and the number of times per week they went compared with their goal.

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