A digital therapeutic platform and University of Manchester spinout that focuses on tackling severe mental illness has closed a £1.8m funding round from the GMC Life Sciences Fund By Praetura, NPIF II – Praetura Equity Finance (which is managed by Praetura Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund), Verge and SFC Capital..

一家专注于解决严重精神疾病的数字治疗平台和曼彻斯特大学分拆公司，完成了由GMC生命科学基金、Praetura、NPIF II – Praetura股权融资（由Praetura Ventures管理，属于北方振兴投资基金的一部分）、Verge和SFC资本共同投资的180万英镑融资。

Launched in 2021, CareLoop integrates with existing treatment pathways, providing patients with digital support while enabling clinicians to remotely monitor and track patients’ symptoms, along with personalised algorithmic escalation prediction to prevent episodes.

CareLoop于2021年推出，整合到现有的治疗路径中，为患者提供数字化支持，同时使临床医生能够远程监控和跟踪患者的症状，并通过个性化的算法升级预测来预防病情发作。

CareLoop was founded by mental health experts Professor Shôn Lewis, Professor John Ainsworth and Professor Sandra Bucci, who are academics at the University of Manchester, along with Zoë Blake (CEO), who previously delivered 10x growth at the digital mental health platform Kooth plc, and COO Dr Pauline Whelan, previously co-director of the GM.Digital unit at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation and the University of Manchester’s Digital Health Software lead..

CareLoop 由心理健康专家 Shôn Lewis 教授、John Ainsworth 教授和 Sandra Bucci 教授（均为曼彻斯特大学的学者）与 Zoë Blake（首席执行官，曾带领数字心理健康平台 Kooth plc 实现10倍增长）以及首席运营官 Pauline Whelan 博士（曾任大曼彻斯特心理健康 NHS 基金会 GM.Digital 部门的联合主任及曼彻斯特大学数字健康软件主管）共同创立。

The company, which is set to open its first headquarters in Manchester’s new Sister innovation district, is backed by over a decade of research, including five clinical trials, with rigorous evidence-based testing to prove its safety and effectiveness in symptom management and reduction in relapses..

该公司将在曼彻斯特新的Sister创新区开设其首个总部，公司背后有超过十年的研究支持，包括五项临床试验，并通过严格的循证测试证明了其在症状管理和减少复发方面的安全性和有效性。

The seed round has been co-led by the GMC Life Sciences Fund By Praetura – which is managed by Praetura Ventures on behalf of Bruntwood SciTech, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and Enterprise Cheshire and Warrington – and Verge HealthTech Fund, a Singapore-based VC firm investing exclusively in impactful healthcare technologies, which counts Impact Ventures by J&J Foundation among its investors..

种子轮融资由GMC生命科学基金和Praetura共同领投，该基金由Praetura Ventures代表Bruntwood SciTech、大曼彻斯特联合管理局（GMCA）以及企业柴郡和沃灵顿管理。另一领投方为总部位于新加坡的Verge HealthTech基金，这是一家专注于投资有影响力的医疗技术的风险投资公司，其投资者包括强生基金会旗下的Impact Ventures。

NPIF II – Praetura Equity Finance, which is managed by Praetura Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, also took part in the round with SFC Capital.

NPIF II – Praetura Equity Finance，由Praetura Ventures作为北方振兴投资基金的一部分管理，也与SFC Capital一同参与了此轮融资。

Last year, the platform was recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) Early Value Assessment programme (EVA), which recommends products for use in the NHS. CareLoop has also identified cash savings for the NHS of between five and 47 times the cost of licensing its product, depending on the severity of each condition..

去年，该平台获得了英国国家卫生与临床优化研究所（NICE）的早期价值评估计划（EVA）推荐，该计划推荐产品在 NHS 中使用。CareLoop 还确定，根据每种病情的严重程度不同，其产品为 NHS 带来的现金节省可达产品许可成本的 5 至 47 倍。

Zoë Blake, CEO of CareLoop, said:

CareLoop首席执行官佐伊·布莱克表示：

“While there are numerous digital mental health tools on the market, they tend to focus on wellbeing and common mental health problems such as anxiety and mild to moderate depression. And whilst many leverage evidence-based techniques, few have the robust clinical evidence of efficacy required to be called a digital therapeutic.  Our mission has always been to provide accessible care where it’s needed to those living with the most severe and enduring mental illnesses.

“虽然市场上有许多数字心理健康工具，但它们往往侧重于福祉和常见的心理健康问题，如焦虑以及轻度到中度抑郁。尽管许多工具利用了基于证据的技术，但很少有工具具备被称为数字疗法所需的强有力临床疗效证据。我们的使命始终是为那些患有最严重和长期精神疾病的人群，在需要的地方提供可及的护理。”

With approval from NICE, over 10 years of data and now the backing of key and well-connected investment partners, we’re looking forward to enhancing the way mental health support is delivered to improve the lives of many millions living with these conditions.”.

在获得NICE的批准、拥有超过十年的数据以及如今关键且人脉广泛的投资合作伙伴的支持下，我们期待提升心理健康支持的提供方式，以改善数百万受这些疾病影响的人们的生活。

Sim Singh-Landa, investment director and head of the GMC Life Sciences Fund By Praetura, said:

Sim Singh-Landa，投资总监兼Praetura旗下的GMC生命科学基金负责人，表示：

“We understood CareLoop’s mission, vision for transforming severe mental illness aftercare and the wider roadmap from our very first meeting with the team. Fast-forward to the present day and we’re incredibly excited to not only be supporting the company with investment but also the more than money guidance and network support it needs to scale and deploy its technology across the NHS and other global health institutions.

“从我们与团队的第一次会面开始，我们就理解了CareLoop的使命、对严重精神疾病后续护理的愿景以及更广泛的路线图。时至今日，我们非常兴奋，不仅通过投资支持这家公司，还提供超越资金的指导和网络支持，帮助其在NHS及其他全球卫生机构中扩展和部署技术。

The company is a testament to the quality of spinouts coming out of the University of Manchester, and the North West’s universities more generally. In addition, it’s great to see the GMC Life Sciences Fund by Praetura and the NPIFII – Praetura Equity Finance funds collaborate alongside co-investors from the UK and Singapore.”.

该公司证明了曼彻斯特大学乃至整个西北地区高校衍生公司的高质量。此外，很高兴看到Praetura和NPIFII – Praetura Equity Finance基金通过GMC生命科学基金与来自英国和新加坡的共同投资者合作。

Scarlett Chen, Managing Partner at Verge HealthTech Fund, said

陈斯嘉，Verge HealthTech基金的管理合伙人表示

: “At Verge, we back healthtech solutions with global impact, and CareLoop fits that vision perfectly. Severe mental illness is a critical but underserved area, and CareLoop’s clinically validated platform has the potential to transform care, not just in the UK but in emerging markets where access is even more limited.

“在Verge，我们支持具有全球影响力的健康技术解决方案，而CareLoop完全符合这一愿景。严重精神疾病是一个关键但服务不足的领域，CareLoop经过临床验证的平台有潜力改变护理方式，不仅在英国，在医疗资源更加有限的新兴市场也是如此。

We’re excited to support their mission to scale life-changing mental health solutions worldwide.”.

我们很高兴支持他们在全球范围内扩展改变生活的心理健康解决方案的使命。”

Dr Kath Mackay, Chief Scientific Officer for Bruntwood SciTech said:

布伦特伍德科技公司的首席科学官凯瑟琳·麦凯博士说：

“The GMC Life Sciences Fund By Praetura Fund was created to back businesses just like CareLoop. A dynamic Manchester-based spinout set to make a national and international impact on mental health care. Their innovative platform is another great example of the region’s ability to create world-class life sciences businesses.

“GMC生命科学基金由Praetura基金管理，旨在支持像CareLoop这样的企业。这家总部位于曼彻斯特的新兴公司，致力于在心理健康护理领域产生全国乃至国际影响。他们创新的平台再次证明了该地区创建世界级生命科学企业的能力。”

We’re excited to be supporting Zoe and the team in the company’s next chapter.”.

我们很高兴能够在公司下一阶段支持佐伊和团队。

Sue Barnard, senior investment manager at British Business Bank, said:

英国商业银行高级投资经理苏·巴纳德表示：

“We’re excited to see another flagship business in the thriving North West technology scene access funding to continue their development of innovative solutions to a vital health service. It’s a good example of how the NPIF II funds can work alongside other funders to provide much needed finance to businesses across the North.”.

“我们很高兴看到西北地区蓬勃发展的技术领域的另一家旗舰企业获得资金，以继续他们为重要的健康服务开发创新解决方案的工作。这是一个很好的例子，展示了NPIF II基金如何与其他资助者合作，为整个北方的企业提供亟需的资金支持。”

In total, it’s estimated that over 70 million people worldwide suffer from a severe mental illness (SMI). Often these conditions are chronic, incurable or extremely difficult to manage, therefore putting vast economic pressure on healthcare providers or services. In the UK caring for people with psychosis alone accounts for 30% of the annual mental health budget – totalling £4bn.

据统计，全球共有 7000 多万人深受严重精神疾病 (SMI) 的折磨。这些病况通常不仅具有慢性特征，而且难以治愈或非常难以控制，因此给医疗服务机构或服务带来巨大的经济压力。在英国，仅对精神病患者的护理就占到心理健康年度预算的 30% —— 总计高达 40 亿英镑。

And in the US, the direct cost of care is $62bn, equating to around $30k per patient per year..

在美国，护理的直接成本为 620 亿美元，相当于每位患者每年约 3 万美元。

Following the investment, CareLoop has confirmed plans to continue developing its technology to encompass other severe mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder.

继投资后，CareLoop 已确认计划继续开发其技术，以涵盖其他严重的精神疾病，包括双相情感障碍。