First Pitchfest winner TestCard strikes a deal with Roche

A former Rewired Pitchfest winner has signed a contract which will see its app introduced on Roche’s digital ecosystem.

TestCard’s ClearScreen app will be included on Roche’s cobas pulse scanning technology’s digital ecosystem. The developed last year, in partnership with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and aim is to improve both speed and accuracy of rapid testing. It is capable of digitally reading, recording and reporting medical tests at point of care and sharing them to a patient’s electronic record.

TestCard was the first ever winner of Digital Health Rewired’s Pitchfest, where it was recognised for its ability to embed a urine diagnostic device into a postcard to help advance point-of-care testing. In April of this year the company raised £7.6 million to support its plans to further commercialise its existing products, as well as launch new ones.

Dr Andrew Botham, chief scientific officer, Testcard, said: “We are very excited to be working with Roche to implement our ClearScreen app onto cobas pulse. Instead of a manual reading and reporting process, ClearScreen can analyse test strips at point-of-need immediately and more reliably than the human eye.

“The test results can then be shared in seconds to clinicians and the Electronic Patient Record (EPR). This makes it far easier for healthcare professionals to record, analyse and share results, making decisions about the patient’s care faster.”

The first test strips that will be support by the TestCard’s technology will be Roche’s Combur 10 UX Urinalysis Test Strips, which are used to detect kidney diseases, metabolic diseases and liver and hemolytic diseases plus monitor the genitourinary system.

TestCard chief executive officer, Chris Craig-Wood, added: “This collaboration with Roche is an incredibly important milestone for TestCard as we continue our mission of making point-of-care testing faster, more accurate and more accessible for our healthcare systems and ultimately, for patients.”