Vitalhub Corp T.VHI

Article: S12 Solutions and Its Purchase by VHI

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M&A Healthcare Transformation Drives Dealmaking Resurgence

Excerpt from the above article describing the origins and success of S12 Solutions and VHI's acquisition of the company:

The story of S12 Solutions: Start-up to acquisition

Founded in 2017 by Amy Manning, an Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP) who had grown weary of the inefficiencies that plagued Mental Health Act (MHA) assessment team organisation, S12 Solutions sought to streamline support for – and better connect – AMHPs, section 12 doctors and the people they support.

Manning had seen slow paper processes drive delays and distress and, convinced that technology could help, developed a platform to bring together the right people, in the right place, at the right time. The application ensures and streamlines secure and compliant operations, automating processes to ensure quicker access to treatment while giving professionals peace of mind and more time to focus on patient care.

The company’s goal was to assess the crisis care pathway and identify where technology could remove inefficiencies so that highly skilled professionals have more time to focus on using those skills to support people being assessed.

“A patient in mental health crisis needs help now. S12 Solutions reduces avoidable delays which put pressure on the rest of the crisis care pathway, and frees up time for professionals by allowing technology to do the heavy lifting where appropriate,” says Tim Webster, Co-Founder and Operations Director. “It’s about finding the best assessing team for the person, contributing to the best outcome for that person, and reducing the likelihood that the person will quickly return to services.”

The service was born out of the fact that crucial hours and even days can be lost sourcing doctors for MHA assessments. With a number of forms then required to be filed, depending on the patient’s circumstance, more precious time passes.

“Our process takes those forms on a digital journey so the right people receive the right documents, electronically,” explains Webster.

The antiquated journey of the paper form goes via multiple individuals, so digitisation also improves the integrity and security of the data it transmits.

S12 Solutions has a link that checks the Department for Health & Social Care’s Mental Health Act Register database of section 12 approved doctors in real-time to ensure doctors have active section 12 approval. The hub is looking at how to integrate transport booking into the application’s offer and has started incorporating payment of claims for doctors, too.
Having evolved with changing health and social care needs, S12 Solutions has found its niche as the only platform providing MHA assessment team organisation, electronic statutory MHA forms, electronic claims and video calling.

“We’re a connection device and we bridge health and social care, which is in line with UK policy goals of bringing things closer together in a more integrated way,” says Webster.

S12 Solutions is now used by approximately 75% of England’s Mental Health Trusts, supporting 5,000+ AMHPs, doctors and claim processors. It was selected for both the NHS Innovation Accelerator and NHS England’s Innovation and Technology Payment programmes, which recognise and support promising emerging innovations.

This dynamic – being able to showcase real-world impact and a unique point of difference – meant the company began to attract wider investor attention. A vision of going global has inspired its connection with Canada’s VitalHub, which acquired S12 Solutions in April 2021.
With the shared goal of simplifying user experience and optimising outcomes, the organisations are looking to expand and roll-out the S12 Solutions offering in countries with similar MHA processes, such as Canada and Australia.

“The big advantage of being part of VitalHub is that we can access global markets. By combining their knowledge and resources with ours, we can expand internationally but also in our live markets,” says Webster, who highlights home-care, among others, as an area where S12 Solutions could provide a simple, effective solution by making better use of direct patient connections.