MedEssist, a fast-growing health tech startup that provides a digital platform to help pharmacies grow and support their patient relationships, came together when two University of Toronto alumni met through mutual friends.
Michael Do, an accomplished computer programmer and 2010 graduate of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy who manages a pharmacy in Toronto’s Parkdale neighbourhood, was working on a computer-vision-based tool to help his senior patients take their medications properly. Joella Almeida, who graduated from U of T’s Woodsworth College in 2018 with a degree in political science, equity studies and diaspora and transnational studies, brought years of e-commerce and payments experience (including Shopify stores for several small businesses). Together, the two began talking to as many pharmacists as they could to learn about their challenges and how they could help.
They launched MedEssist in 2019 to bring digital solutions to those pain points, receiving support from U of T’s Health Innovation Hub (H2i). Through H2i, the team received guidance from the University Health Network-Techna Institute of Biomedical Engineering and the Faculty of Dentistry Translational Biology and Engineering Program, as well as a valuable office space at the ONRamp co-working space. MedEssist also tapped into the research-backed expertise at U of T to support them throughout their journey, especially from Dr. Paul Santerre, professor of biomaterials, director of H2i and Baxter Chair in health technology and commercialization.
“Mentorship and domain expertise are critical for an early-stage company, and the U of T network provided us with invaluable clinical advice and feedback— when we needed it most.” says Almeida. “There’s no doubt, we would not be a company had it not been for our encouraging UofT mentors.”
Through H2i and their close ties to U of T, Almeida and Do also had access to a breadth and depth of alumni expertise that was instrumental in developing MedEssist. “U of T’s alumni are so strong and powerful. It doesn’t matter what you studied, they will be there for you,” Almeida says.
During the pandemic, the Ontario Pharmacists Association partnered with MedEssist to provide pharmacists with digital tools to help safely and efficiently deliver large quantities of vaccines. In 2022, the company raised their first funding round from Hyperplane Venture Capital and today is focused on using AI alongside their core platform to enable pharmacies to offer critical access to acute care not currently available at traditional pharmacies in Canada or the U.S.
