OVANTIS

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of information systems at Luz Saúde, one of the biggest healthcare providers in the Portuguese healthcare system. We have 28 hospitals and outpatient clinics across the country providing in- and outpatient and emergency care. I’m in charge of the information systems for five units at our hospital in Lisbon. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with OVANTIS?

We needed help with the interoperability and development of solutions that integrate with our electronic medical records (EMR). 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

OVANTIS primarily develops software that interacts with our EMR. They’re currently developing three solutions for specific sectors of our clinics. First, they’re working on e-prescriptions software that integrates prescriptions across units and with government services. The second solution, a bed management system, focuses on managing the capacity of individuals in our in-patient, emergency, and ICU departments. The last solution is more focused on interoperability. We have a lot of solutions that need to be integrated into our EMR, and since they’ve developed a lot of our technology, they’re part of the team that integrates them all into our EMR. 

What is the team composition?

At the moment, we’re working with six teammates from OVANTIS, including Carlos (Co-Founder), who we’ve been working with for 10 years. 

How did you come to work with OVANTIS?

We were already working with Carlos before he started OVANTIS. His business knowledge was important to us, so we hired them. They had experience with our IT systems and in the healthcare sector. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested around €150,000 (approximately $160,000 USD) with OVANTIS. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our current projects with OVANTIS began in January 2021, and our partnership is ongoing. We plan to collaborate with them for another 1–2 years because the current projects have very large scopes.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

In general, we only have positive feedback for OVANTIS because of the strong partnership we have with Carlos. They have a lot of knowledge about healthcare, which contributes to the quality of their solutions. OVANTIS is well-integrated into our ecosystem. Also, OVANTIS is very available and professional. 

How did OVANTIS perform from a project management standpoint?

We have meetings during the week with OVANTIS to go over all the projects we’re working on. We also have individual project meetings with OVANTIS. Overall, our communication is excellent — we have a really close partnership. We’re following Scrum methodologies and using internal project management software shared with all our partners. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

First, OVANTIS’ knowledge and experience in the healthcare sector are great. Also, their innovation and focus on delivering products better than what we’ve requested are amazing. For example, we asked them to develop our bed management, and they were able to produce a better scope. They exceed our expectations when it comes to delivering functionalities that we need in our products. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

OVANTIS is currently limited in their capacity, but I’ve already conveyed that to them. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’d advise customers to have a clear definition of the scope of each project they work on with OVANTIS. The healthcare system is very complex, and if the project’s boundaries and scope aren’t defined, it’s difficult for OVANTIS to plan and forecast the timeline.