Last year, we launched Catherine, an AI-powered conversational engagement platform that provides tailored, 24/7 support to dementia caregivers. With Catherine, we’re supporting people along a challenging care journey in an entirely new way — but we didn’t achieve this accomplishment alone.
Two years ago, we joined forces with Accrete Health Partners. Together, we put a plan in motion to radically transform patient and caregiver journeys with empathetic, AI-powered conversations.
Brado + Accrete: Our Origin Story
Accrete, a holding company launched in May of 2022 by Bon Secours Mercy Health (BSMH), invests in digital innovators across the continuum of care. With a major focus on AI innovation — and a portfolio that includes H2O.ai, Truveta Data, and Nordic Consulting Partners — Accrete’s investments help optimize care delivery and improve efficiencies for patients, providers, and health systems.
“It’s fairly unique for a health system to be as thoughtful as we are in our partnerships and the construction of this portfolio,” said Mark Townsend, MD, MHCM, and Chief Clinical Innovation Officer at Bon Secours Mercy Health (BSMH) and Accrete Health Partners.
In December, 2022, we were lucky enough to join Accrete’s roster of digital health pioneers. Compelled by our proprietary journey research approach and vision to drive meaningful conversations in healthcare by way of generative AI, Accrete made a strategic investment in us so we could get to work helping the communities BSMH serves.
“Accrete has a powerful track record investing in and shaping effective innovations in healthcare. We could not have a better partner to bring to market the platform that we believe will transform consumer engagement in health journeys.”
Andy Parham ~ CEO, BradoEmpathy + Meaningful Conversations = Better Experiences
Together, Brado and Accrete set out to solve a major healthcare challenge: helping people find the right care at the right time in the right place. “We came in believing that advancements in conversational AI would be a key enabler to how we would tackle that challenge,” Parham said. Recognizing the indispensability of empathy and compassion in dementia care, we started there.
In October of last year, we launched our very first platform, named after Mercy Health founder, Sr. Catherine McAuley. Since then, Catherine has helped dementia caregivers navigate fears, frustrations, and hopes with trusted education and empathetic guidance. All the while, our purpose-built AI continues to learn, iterate, and improve. “We’re doing something that we don’t think anyone else has,” Townsend said.
Where We Go Next
Using what we’ve gleaned from Catherine and the dementia care journey, Townsend said he’s looking forward to expanding the platform. “We are now, in a very concerted way, planning to roll out the platform across different BSMH service lines,” Parham said.
These care journeys may include orthopedics, sports medicine, musculoskeletal and spine with a goal of working toward additional service-lines like neurology and heart & vascular, according to Townsend.
For health systems like BSMH, conversational AI represents the modern era of patient engagement. “Digital marketing can’t be limited by social media, Facebook, and content searches in Google. There’s got to be something more to it,” Townsend said.
Mark Townsend, MD
Curious what you can achieve with Brado? We’d love to talk.