Empower to set up DermSecure at two Ontario locations
Mr. Steven McAuley of Empower reports
EMPOWER CLINICS AND MEDX HEALTH TO PILOT WORLD-CLASS TELEDERMATOLOGY SCREENING PLATFORM AT SELECT ONTARIO INTEGRATED HEALTH CENTERS
2021-03-10 News Release – Empower Clinics Inc. and MedX Health Corp. have entered into a memorandum of understanding between the companies to pilot MedX’s leading-edge DermSecure screening platform at two select Empower Clinics locations in Ontario with plans for a broader market rollout pending the completion of a successful pilot.
"Empower exists to make testing, screening and diagnostics as convenient as possible for patients," said Steven McAuley, Chairman and CEO of Empower. "Providing our patients with easy access to quality virtual services like teledermatology compliments our current COVID-19 testing amid the ongoing pandemic. MedX is an ideal teledermatology partner, as their screening platform is second to none. We look forward to the results of this pilot and making the platform more widely available throughout our network."
Teledermatology is a subspeciality of dermatology that offers safe and effective virtual care-patient screening, assessment and diagnosis – eliminating the need for in-person appointments with a dermatologist. Unlike other teledermatology screening tools available, MedX's DermSecure™ Screening Platform features high-resolution image capture technology for moles, lesions and other skin conditions, providing a complete, virtual dermatological assessment by a certified dermatologist within just 72 hours.
"With only about 500 dermatologists available to serve over 37 million Canadians, the wait times to see a specialist in-person can be anywhere from five months to one year," said Mike Druhan, President, Dermatology Services, MedX Health Corp. "The COVID-19 pandemic has nearly doubled the average wait period. We know that early detection of melanoma greatly increases the patient's survival rate and reduces the cost to the health-care system. Partnering with Empower allows us to dramatically grow our patient base, and ultimately save more lives."
According to the Canadian Dermatology Association, last year an estimated 8,000 Canadians were diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer and approximately 1,300 Canadians died of the disease. With mortality rates increasing by as much as 1.2% per year since 1984, early and rapid detection is key to improving patient outcomes.
The pilot program will be in place for four months, reaching an estimated 13,500 patients. Pending the pilot's successful completion, the MedX DermSecure™ Screening Platform will become more widely available Empower's health center network across North America.
Empower is an integrated healthcare company that provides body and mind wellness for patients through its clinics, with digital and telemedicine care, and world-class medical diagnostics laboratories. Supported by an experienced leadership team, Empower is aggressively growing its clinical and digital presence across the US and Canada. Our Health & Wellness and Diagnostics & Technology business units are positioned to positively impact the integrated health of our patients, while simultaneously providing long term value for our shareholders.ABOUT MedX:
MedX, headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, is a leading medical device and software company focused on skin health with its SIAscopy™ on DermSecure™ telemedicine platform, utilizing its SIAscopy™ technology. SIAscopy™ is also imbedded in its products SIAMETRICS™, SIMSYS™, and MoleMate™, which MedX manufactures in its ISO 13485 certified facility. SIAMETRICS™, SIMSYS™, and MoleMate™ include hand-held devices that use patented technology utilizing light and its remittance to view up to 2 mm beneath suspicious moles and lesions in a pain free, non-invasive manner, with its software then creating real-time images for physicians and dermatologists to evaluate all types of moles or lesions within seconds. These products are cleared by Health Canada, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Therapeutic Goods Administration and Conformite Europeenne for use in Canada, the US, Australia, New Zealand, the European Union, Brazil and Turkey. Visit https://medxhealth.com.ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS: