Posted on Mon, Aug 23, 2010
November 15th – 18th in Atlanta GA
Baltimore, MD: Ankota looks forward to exhibiting at the MedTrade Conference and Expo from November 15th – 18th. The conference will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.
MedTrade prides itself on “Connecting the HME Industry.” Their conference, entitled THE NATIONAL HOME HEALTH CARE EXPOSITION TM continues to be the leader in serving the home health care marketplace by providing a forum to bring buyers and sellers together while offering educational development programs.
“Ankota’s solution is exactly what the HME industry needs at this time,” explained Ankota CEO Will Hicklen. “Ankota offsets the extreme reimbursement pressure DME companies are facing by giving them the tools to increase their delivery capacity without increasing cost.” Ankota’s software solution achieves this by providing delivery schedule optimization that saves the agency money in five different ways:
- Assignments and routes are automatically calculated, saving each driver 45 minutes or more per day
- Delivery routes are optimized, reducing driving miles, driving time, fuel costs and vehicle costs
- Real-time changes to schedules can be accommodates with a drag-and-drop interface and simple tools to deal with emergency deliveries throughout the day.
- Status is tracked in real-time, allowing back office workers to manage by exception rather than needing to follow-up on each delivery. Ultimately this enables each back office worker to manage more field resources and can enable the agency to increase territories or product lines
- The hosted solution with a growing number of automated integrations to inventory and billing systems eliminates the need for ongoing IT staff support
You can download an Ankota DME product brochure here.
Please visit Ankota at booth 230.
About MedTrade
Medtrade and Medtrade Spring are produced by Nielsen Business Media, a part of the Nielsen Company. Nielsen Business Media is a full service event management company that professionally operates, arranges, organizes and sponsors trade shows, expositions, conferences, conventions and meetings for associations, corporations and government entities. Nielsen is also one of the world's largest leading publishing and information companies and has leading marketing positions in consumer magazines, directories and information services, business information as well as educational publishing.
About Ankota
Ankota is a leading service provider of innovative, technology-based software for home care management. The company is a pioneer of next generation SaaS solutions for Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), Private Duty, Durable Medical Equipment (DME), Physical Therapy and Home Infusion markets. Ankota is committed to improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside the hospital setting.
Ankota's suite of solutions includes: "delivery model" optimization - automating complex scheduling requirements; telephony and web-based tracking of patient visits and health status; paperless trails for supervision and audits; billing systems integration; and accurate, real-time reporting. Ankota's Family Connect, a secure web-based tool, ensures patient families are always one click away from knowing their relative's health and well-being.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://www.ankota.com/.
Posted on Mon, Aug 09, 2010
Combining Peer Support with Disease Management to Improve Drug Addiction Recovery Outcomes
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND (August 9, 2010) - Ankota, Inc., a Healthcare SaaS company, submitted an application to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Grant. The SBIR program was created, in the words of program founder Roland Tibbets: "to provide funding for some of the best early-stage innovation ideas -- ideas that, however promising, are still too high risk for private investors, including venture capital firms." For the purposes of the SBIR program, the term "small business" is defined as a for-profit business with fewer than 500 employees, owned by one or more individuals who are citizens of, or permanent resident aliens in, the United States of America.
Ankota's grant application is entitled "Improving Peer Based Addiction Recovery Management through Information Technology." The premise of the research is that recovery from addiction is a long process that requires more than just addition recovery. It also requires treatment of medical needs, and social needs to drive the lifestyle and behavior change that will ultimately lead to full recovery. The approach combines peer support (such as Narcotics Anonymous [NA]) and disease management techniques (used for acute issue recovery and chronic disease care). This provides a framework for complete addiction recovery, but since it can take three to five years, automation is critical to keep things on track.
Collaborating with Ankota are the following:
- Dr. J. Hunter Young, MD - Johns Hopkins
- Dr. Maxine Stitzer - Johns Hopkins
- The Center for Health Information and Decision Support (CHIDS) at the University of Maryland
Ankota's mission is to improve the quality and efficiency of care delivery outside of the hospital. Ankota's commercial products are designed for home care agencies (private duty, home health, home physical therapy, home respiratory therapy, home infusion therapy, respiratory therapy, and medical equipment deliver including DME/HME). This research extends home care to the new discipline of peer-based addiction recovery.
"It's exciting to apply our technology to leading edge medical research," explained Ankota Chief Technology Officer Ken Accardi. "Plus we're confident that these models of care management will become both critical and prevalent when healthcare reform increases care coverage through Medicaid starting in 2014."
About Ankota: Ankota is a leading service provider of innovative, technology-based software for home care management. The company is a pioneer of next generation SaaS solutions for Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), Private Duty, Durable Medical Equipment (DME), and Home Infusion markets. Ankota is committed to improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside the hospital setting.
Ankota's suite of solutions includes: "delivery model" optimization - automating complex scheduling requirements; telephony and web-based tracking of patient visits and health status; paperless trails for supervision and audits; billing systems integration; and accurate, real-time reporting. Ankota's Family Connect, a secure web-based tool, ensures patient families are always one click away from knowing their relative's health and well-being.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://www.ankota.com/.
Posted on Tue, Jul 13, 2010
July 14th – 16th in Chicago IL
Baltimore, MD: Ankota looks forward to exhibiting solutions that improve the quality and efficiency of the delivery of home care at the NAHC 16th Annual Financial Management Conference and Exposition (HHFMA meeting). The meeting will be held from Julty 14th through the 16th at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers in Chicago IL.
While the mainstay educational topics of accounting, collections, and cost reporting are still prevalent at the conference, there is a growing interest among financial managers on how to improve the efficiency of care delivery, and Ankota is excited to share our solutions. Some of the improvements that agencies can make with the assistance of Ankota’s technology are as follows:
- Reduce the time that caregivers spend on scheduling, determining where to go, and driving, allowing more time with patients.
- Coordinate episodes of care so that all services are provided and billed, and no equipment is left behind
- Communicate proactively with Family Members to improve relationships and cut down on “phone tag”
- Track care delivery for paraprofessionals via telephony and smart phone applications to reduce paperwork while increasing compliance and reporting
Ankota made its public debut at the NAHC 15th Annual Financial Managers Conference in Boston last July and has since grown rapidly. “This is a celebration of our 1st birthday,” explained Ankota CEO Will Hicklen, “We’re so pleased with the welcome we’ve received by the home care community and look forward to helping the industry thrive. Our focus on improving the quality and efficiency of care delivery continues to make us unique among software providers, but as the word spreads, so does the value we deliver."
Please visit Ankota at booth 908.
About NAHC
NAHC is the nation's largest trade association representing the interests and concerns of home care agencies, hospices, home care aide organizations, and medical equipment suppliers. Simply put, NAHC is the one organization dedicated to making home care and hospice providers lives easier.
About Ankota
Ankota is a leading service provider of innovative, technology-based software for home care management. The company is a pioneer of next generation SaaS solutions for Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), Private Duty, Durable Medical Equipment (DME), Physical Therapy and Home Infusion markets. Ankota is committed to improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside the hospital setting.
Ankota's suite of solutions includes: "delivery model" optimization - automating complex scheduling requirements; telephony and web-based tracking of patient visits and health status; paperless trails for supervision and audits; billing systems integration; and accurate, real-time reporting. Ankota's Family Connect, a secure web-based tool, ensures patient families are always one click away from knowing their relative's health and well-being.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://www.ankota.com/.
Posted on Wed, May 26, 2010
Family Connect Provides Secured Information for Home Care Patients
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND (May 26, 2010) - Ankota, Inc., a Healthcare SaaS company, has launched Family Connect, an innovative software product that enables healthcare professionals and homecare agencies to provide real-time information to family members about their loved ones' health and well-being. Taking as little as 3 minutes a week per patient, an agency can provide critical information directly to families - monitoring data such as activity level, state of mental health, daily routines, exercise, overall energy, eating habits and week-to-week changes. Secured updates are sent via e-mail or text, to all authorized family members at once, whether they live close-by or across the country. Family Connect includes the Quick Connect feature for instant, urgent family updates at any time.
Link to Family Connect Page
According to Will Hicklen, Ankota CEO and co-founder, Family Connect offers families much needed peace of mind. "When patients receive at-home care, it is often challenging for family members to track the progress of their loved one in a meaningful way. What Family Connect really does is help relieve the anxiety and pressure from family members. They are receiving information about their loved one which can help them make more informed healthcare decisions," said Hicklen.
Key features of Family Connect - it is instant and simultaneous. It is challenging for healthcare professionals to keep family members abreast of health updates on their loved ones when schedules demand visits to other patients and tasks requiring immediate attention. Family Connect affords home healthcare professionals the ability to reach out to multiple family members in real-time alleviating missed phone calls. In addition, healthcare professionals are able to view feedback or questions posed by family members and reply to them right away.
Added Hicklen, "We are the first healthcare IT company to offer this vital service to our homecare clients and we know Family Connect will make a difference in the services they provide to patients and families."
About Ankota: Ankota is a leading service provider of innovative, technology-based software for home care management. The company is a pioneer of next generation SaaS solutions for Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), Private Duty, Durable Medical Equipment (DME), and Home Infusion markets. Ankota is committed to improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside the hospital setting.
Ankota's suite of solutions includes: "delivery model" optimization - automating complex scheduling requirements; telephony and web-based tracking of patient visits and health status; paperless trails for supervision and audits; billing systems integration; and accurate, real-time reporting. Ankota's Family Connect, a secure web-based tool, ensures patient families are always one click away from knowing their relative's health and well-being.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://www.ankota.com/.
Posted on Wed, May 05, 2010
Ankota's rapid rise and relentless focus on ROI for its customers is recognized in SmartCEO Magazine's Annual Circle of Excellence Awards
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - "We are thrilled to be named the HOT STARTUP by SmartCEO Magazine," said company CEO and co-founder, Will Hicklen. "SmartCEO follows the most dynamic companies in the Mid-Atlantic region-this is an exciting recognition that we are growing a successful company that addresses immediate needs for home healthcare companies," said Hicklen. SmartCEO's Circle of Excellence Awards event will be held on May 12, 2010 at the Intercontinental Harbor Court Hotel in Baltimore from 6:00-9:00p.m. Several customers and leaders in the healthcare community will join Ankota in the celebration.
"The secret to Ankota's early success is its relentless focus on immediate ROI for its clients-something the struggling healthcare industry can embrace," writes Jeanine Clingenpeel in the May 2010 feature story. Ankota's technology is usually self-funding in the first quarter of use. Customers typically see immediate reductions in certain operating expenses, increase their capacity with existing staff, and accelerate billing by days or even weeks.
"Circle of Excellence winners are not only selected and honored for their accomplishments, but for demonstrating success in applying unique leadership attributes that significantly benefits their business and the community," said Craig Burris, Publisher at SmartCEO Magazine. "We are honored to recognize Will Hicklen as one of Greater Baltimore's standout leaders." The full article is available online http://www.smartceo.com/content/digitalba0510
Hicklen credits the company's early success to an all-star leadership team that includes Dr. Hunter Young, a physician at Johns Hopkins and the company's Chief Medical Officer, Ken Accardi, Chief Technology Officer and veteran CIO from GE Healthcare, and Marc Ottinger, formerly of Anderson Consulting, who is COO. Ankota is Hicklen's fourth software startup, the last, iLumin, was successfully sold to Computer Associates.
The idea for Ankota came to Will while helping his wife, Sandy, during her three year battle with cancer. Hicklen's frustrations over coordinating her care illuminated an inefficient system with tremendous opportunity to improve care planning and execution.
His 20+ years experience with supply chain technologies and business performance management gave him a unique perspective. "There are great people in healthcare who are very committed to what they do, but they are saddled with a system that forces them to spend time doing unproductive things. This is incredibly inefficient and costly to the system." Adding, "These are problems that we have solved in other industries."
About Ankota: Ankota is the pioneering company in the field of Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), focused on improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside of the hospital. HDM is a process-centric, technology-enabled approach to managing the "delivery model," automating complex scheduling requirements and optimizing scarce resources such as people, time, equipment, and supplies.
Customers include Home Health Care, Private Duty, Home Infusion, Respiratory Therapy, Home Medical Equipment (HME/DME) providers, and more.
Founded in 2008 and launched in 2009, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://ankota.com
Posted on Fri, Apr 30, 2010
The news article below was released by Ankota customer Chesapeake Medical Staffing, who are using Ankota's Private Duty Agency software to expand their business.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND (April 20, 2010) - In today's challenging climate, with hospitals less busy than in past years and with labor more abundant due to the recession, the focus is clearly on ways to cut costs. This trend creates a unique situation for companies such as Chesapeake Medical Staffing because the demand for outsourcing in the hospital sector has decreased yet the need for expert medical help has not. Chesapeake Medical Staffing announced today that they will be significantly expanding their business into the home care and private duty sectors.
"We must be able to reinvent ourselves and meet the new needs of the changing healthcare industry, so that we remain relevant and necessary. In order to move forward and find new markets for our business, we have made a decision to expand into the home care and private duty sectors, which will be booming in the coming years," said Terri Weller, President and Chief Clinical Officer. She added," We already have highly trained nurses, many of whom are experts in acute care, so they can easily transfer into the home care setting."
Chesapeake Medical Staffing currently has technology and software that works effectively for hospital staffing, but with this expansion, needed specific technology that will address home care and private duty. Creating new technology can be costly and take time to develop so Chesapeake Medical Staffing conducted research and found Ankota, Inc., a national company offering Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM) that could be implemented right away because it is Software-as-a-Service.
"In this competitive market, many companies are seeking much needed technology to help them save money and be more profitable. We are able to help immediately. Ankota helps with care planning, scheduling, resource optimization, resource tracking with multiple devices including mobile phones, In addition, Ankota allows for real-time escalation of care concerns, tracking and paperless reporting "says Ankota CEO and co-founder, Will Hicklen. "It's a great partnership and allows us to help our clients achieve their ultimate mission, better patient care."
Posted on Fri, Apr 02, 2010
The Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council (http://www.masstlc.org/) will feature Ankota CTO Ken Accardi as the keynote speaker at their April 13th Healthcare Committee meeting, sponsored by IBM, Partners Healthcare, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and UK Trade and Investment. Ken's presentation is entitled Introducing the Silver Tsunami: Healthcare Technologies to Support the Elderly.
Here is Mass TLC's summary of the event:
With a record number of Americans living deep into their 80s and 90s, and the 75 million baby boomers starting to reach age 65 at a rate of 8,000 per day, health care for elderly Americans is becoming a major focus in healthcare technology. MassTLC members are welcome to join Ken Accardi, CTO of Ankota as he provides an introduction to the elder care landscape, including technologies for home safety, tele-health, improved care delivery, and more.
Ken's presentation will be followed by a planning meeting to discuss future MassTLC events including an upcoming program in May entitled "Using Technology to Improve Care while Right-sizing Costs, via Better Analytics", featuring representatives from Boston area health plans.
Ken's presentation will draw from Ankota's experience with home care, private duty care and emerging care delivery models such as geriatric care management, and will also pull from the works of Laurie Orlov, an elder care expert whose website is http://www.ageinplacetech.com/.
This event is intended for MassTLC members only and specifically for the healthcare cluster leadership team, however Ken is able to extend a small number of invitations (email ken at ken.accardi@ankota.com for more details).
About MassTLC:
Formed by the powerful combination of Mass Software Council and New England Business and Technology Association, Inc., the 
organization is dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship and promoting the success of companies that develop and deploy technology across industry sectors. The Mass Technology Leadership Council accomplishes its mission by conducting educational programs and hosting signature events, facilitating networking between industry executives and potential partners, investors, and c ustomers, sponsoring research on the industry, engaging in activities to enhance the quality and quantity of the next generation of technology professionals, advocating in favor of technology policies that promote innovation and entrepreneurship, and recognizing industry-leading companies and people.
About Ankota:
Ankota is the pioneering company in the field of Healthcare Delivery Management, providing software to improve the quality and efficiency of care delivered outside the hospital and doctor's office. Ankota's software is used by Home Health Care Agencies, Private Duty Non-Medical Home Care Providers and other specialized disciplines of care including Home Infusion Therapy, Physical Therapy, Respiratory Therapy, and Delivery of Home Medical Equipment. Learn more at www.ankota.com or contact Ankota.
Posted on Tue, Mar 09, 2010
(Baltimore, MD and Moorestown, NJ) Ankota Inc. and Franklin Productivity Alliance LLC (FPA) announced today the formation of a partnership where FPA will market and sell Ankota's technology and services in eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and surrounding areas.
"We're thrilled to partner with Franklin Productivity Alliance," says Ankota CEO and co-founder, Will Hicklen, adding, "Their commitment to better organizing and managing health care delivery, and support of initiatives such as in Aging In Place & related technologies, makes them a perfect complement to Ankota."
Under the partnership, Franklin Productivity Alliance will market and sell Ankota's progressive Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM) technology and provide integration services and training for related technologies.
"Ankota has organized healthcare into a highly efficient delivery model, allowing it to be better planned and coordinated. Ankota's technology is truly groundbreaking, cutting operational costs and dramatically improving productivity for the companies that deliver health care services, equipment, and supplies for patients in the home," says Dean Jester, President of Franklin Productivity Alliance. "Even the way customers access the technology is efficient," says Jester, referencing the Software-as- a-Service model through which customers pay only as they use it and access through secure internet, mobile and telephony connections.
About Ankota:
Ankota is the pioneering company in the field of Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), focused on improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside of the hospital. HDM is a process-centric, technology enabled approach to managing the "delivery model," automating complex scheduling requirements and optimizing scarce resources such as people, time, equipment, and supplies.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://ankota.com/
About Franklin Productivity Alliance
Franklin Productivity Alliance LLC provides Go to Market services for technology partners for both Sales Preparation and Sales Representation. A unique combination of FPA direct services and Alliance member offerings provide cost effective productivity solutions that help end users meet their goals for efficiency and growth. For more on FPA please visit http://franklinproductivity.com/
Posted on Wed, Mar 03, 2010
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND (March 3, 2010) - With more and more Americans needing home healthcare, the Private Duty Healthcare sector continues to grow at an amazing rate and with that growth comes the need for improved procedures and technology. The National Private Duty Association will be holding their 8th Annual Leadership Conference March 10-12 at the Sheraton Philadelphia City Center. Exhibitors, including Ankota, Inc., will be on hand to showcase their latest products and services aimed at providing private duty professionals with technology that will allow them to provide better patient care and cut costs. (Ankota, Inc. will be located at booth #32 at the conference.)
"Private Duty companies have been technology-starved for many years and we wanted to help them improve their systems and therefore improve their patient care," says Ankota CEO and co-founder Will Hicklen. "Our packaging and pricing is suitable for both full and part time staff, with simple or complex needs, and addresses the Private Duty market with a scalable, easy to use solution that offers immediate return on investment." The package includes:
- Comprehensive Care Planning
- Scheduling and Resource Optimization
- Telephony & Mobile Resource Tracking
- Real-time escalation of Care Concerns
- Work Tracking & Reporting
- A Virtual Logbook for Distant Family Members
- Billing
He added "To thrive in this growing market, the companies with the tools to delivery operational excellence will be the ones who win," says Hicklen. "Every company we talk to is concerned about their ability to grow profitability, and we can help that immediately."
According to Kim Stoneking, Executive Director for the National Private Duty Association, "The National Private Duty Association is very pleased to have Ankota as a supporter and an associate member of the NPDA. We believe the services they offer for the betterment of care givers will be of interest to the membership."
About Ankota: Ankota is the pioneering company in the field of Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), focused on improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside of the hospital. HDM is a process-centric, technology-enabled approach to managing the "delivery model," automating complex scheduling requirements and optimizing scarce resources such as people, time, equipment, and supplies.
Ankota's Private Duty offering adds to the company's suite of solutions that help companies plan, coordinate and deliver care outside of the hospital setting. Ankota's HDM suite already serves Home Health, Medical Equipment (HME/DME), Respiratory Therapy (RT) and Infusion. HDM solutions are integrated, scalable for small to large businesses, and available via subscription.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://ankota.com/
Posted on Wed, Feb 10, 2010
BALTIMORE, Feb. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1.2 million people are employed in the Private Duty Home Care market and it is expected to add more than 400,000 jobs over the next ten years. Ankota HDM for Private Duty was introduced last month at the 5th Annual Private Duty Home Care Leadership Summit and Expo in Phoenix.
"The Private Duty market is technology-starved, and there is a tremendous opportunity to help companies to better plan and schedule services while improving their profitability and accountability," said Ankota CEO and co-founder Will Hicklen. Suitable for both full and part time staff, with simple or complex needs, Ankota's Private Duty offer includes:
- Comprehensive Care Planning
- Scheduling and Resource Optimization
- Telephony & Mobile Resource Tracking
- Real-time escalation of Care Concerns
- Work Tracking & Reporting
- A Virtual Logbook for Distant Family Members
- Billing
"Every company we talk to is concerned about their ability to grow profitability, and we can help that immediately," says Hicklen.
About Ankota: Ankota is the pioneering company in the field of Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM), focused on improving the quality and efficiency of health care outside of the hospital. HDM is a process-centric, technology-enabled approach to managing the "delivery model," automating complex scheduling requirements and optimizing scarce resources such as people, time, equipment, and supplies.
Ankota's Private Duty offering adds to the company's suite of healthcare technology solutions, serving Home Health, Medical Equipment (HME/DME), Respiratory Therapy (RT), Infusion, and Private Duty. HDM solutions are integrated, scalable for small to large businesses, and available via subscription.
Founded in 2008, Ankota, Inc. is based in Baltimore, Maryland with offices in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Minneapolis. For more information please go to http://ankota.com/