Maven Clinic on Thursday launched the Maven Clinical Institute, a new research initiative to examine how digital health can improve care for women and families.
Based in New York City, Maven Clinic provides support for fertility, fertility, parenting, menopause and other areas. It works with more than 2,000 health plans and employers in 175 countries, including Amazon, Microsoft and AT&T.
The institute works to build a large public evidence base for digital women's and family health. This includes making Maven's research findings public, such as a report on the impact of virtual doula care. The institute, directed by clinicians, scientists and community leaders, will help inform Maven's care model.
In addition, the institute will help support healthcare industry partnerships, including those between research institutions, technology partners and healthcare innovators. Some of Maven's partners include Harvard Medical School, Brown University, Posterity, and ŌURA.
“The Maven Clinical Research Institute is our evidence engine,” Maven Clinic Chief Medical Officer Dr. Neel Shah said in an email. “It exists to rigorously assess the actual effects of virtual care on women and families—in terms of outcomes, costs, and equity—and to make that evidence public. In short, we are setting scientific standards for digital health in care for women and families.”
Maven also released its first clinical impact report, showing that its virtual care model improved outcomes and reduced costs for underserved populations, including lowering C-section rates for Black members receiving Maven doulas and cost savings for LGBTQIA+ members.
The institute comes as virtual care continues to grow among patients, with one in three adults using telehealth at some point. However, according to Maven Clinic, research on virtual care is lacking.
“Virtual care is everywhere, but the science hasn’t caught up yet,” Shah said. “Employers, health plans and clinicians are being asked to make important decisions without clear, consistent evidence. We founded the institute to close that gap—to put digital health on the same level as any other field of medicine and replace hype with evidence.”
He added that in five years' time he hopes the institute will become a virtual reference point for women's and family health.
“This means a broad and credible evidence base, clear standards for evaluating digital care, and research that goes beyond being published in journals to actively shaping the way care is delivered, paid for and improved at scale,” he said.
Maven Clinic isn't the only company trying to assess digital health. The Peterson Institute for Health Technology is also looking into virtual care, but in areas including mental health, musculoskeletal care and diabetes.
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