Florida Institute Provides Seed Funding to Gainesville-Based Shadow Health
Seed-Stage Company Focused on Nursing and Allied Health Education Programs
Boca Raton and Gainesville, FL (December 08, 2011)-The Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research (the Institute) announced today that it has finalized a funding agreement with Shadow Health, Inc., an early-stage Gainesville-based company that develops digital interactive, clinical experiences for medical, nursing and allied health education programs. The Institute works with Florida’s research universities and institutions to support new company and job creation. The goal of this program is to bridge funding gaps for early-stage companies and enable them to attract additional capital from angel investors, venture capital firms and others.
Shadow Health is developing products based on technology that the company licensed from the University of Florida. According to David Massias, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, “This program provides much-needed support for early stage companies like ours that are on track to grow and create jobs in the state. This funding will enable us to make our contribution to reforming healthcare education by adding several new positions to our educators, subject-matter experts, engineering and sales team here in Gainesville to accelerate the launch of our product nationwide.”
Shadow Health is developing a platform for medical, nursing and allied health students to engage in standardized simulated clinical experiences. Simply stated, the students use their computers to orally and physically examine a patient. These clinical simulations provide opportunities to develop better bedside manner, improve physical examination procedures and take better patient histories. The Company’s goal is to provide students with more clinical learning experiences in healthcare education. For more information, please visit www.shadowhealth.com.
“The Institute is pleased to bring this innovative program to high-potential companies like Shadow Health that are creating high-wage, high skill jobs in key industries,” said Jane Teague, Interim Executive Director of the Institute. “Provided as a loan to qualifying companies, the seed funding program requires that recipients secure matching funds from private investors, thus doubling the state’s contribution and making a real economic development impact in Florida.”