Corvallis, Oregon-based Kannact has raised $3 million in its first round funding from undisclosed angel investors. The company is working on an Android tablet-based home care and remote patient monitoring system called Gladstone.

CEO Krishna Rao told MobiHealthNews that the funding will go to feasibility testing and development of the product, which has so far only been deployed in pilots. The company is also seeking an additional $3 million in funding.

"We're running through three pilots working with a major [insurance] carrier here," he said. "Our goal is -- in the next six months -- to get it going on both the tablet and the phone product to physically have enough data to show that it works, and then we have the market launch after that."

On its Google Play store page, the company describes Gladstone as "an enterprise level, tablet-based, healthcare collaboration tool that allows providers, caregivers, and patients to proactively manage a patient’s health through individualized care plans and real-time video conferencing with the patient at home."

Kannact will sell the software to health insurers and employers for about $2 per covered body per month. Payors will make it available to patients with chronic diseases. Initially, doctors will give pre-loaded tablets to patients, but the company is working on a smartphone version, as well, that patients will be able to download on their personal devices.

"On the tablet we load their personal care plan, education information about their specific condition, and video content taken during a session with the patient," Chief Medical Officer Michael May told MobiHealthNews. "That patient then takes the tablet home. Other components are a video connection -- the patient can push a button, and connect directly to the health engagement team -- [and] sticky notes, which are essentially kind of a text messaging, the nurse can text as a kind of reminder."

The device will also connect to various Bluetooth connected medical devices like pulse oximeters, weight scales, and blood pressure monitors.

"Once a person takes their vital signs or uses one of these Bluetooth devices, it automatically shows up on the tablet for realtime feedback and sends back to the primary care office," said May. "On the provider's side, what they see floats to the top all of the patients whose readings are outside of the parameters they'd set up. Those immediately float to the top so the primary care provider can see who's out of reach and how to engage the patient better."

In addition, family members, including those living far away, can be given a password that will allow them to see a patient's vitals measurements and updates to their care plan. In addition to payors, the company is exploring pilot possibilities with hospices and home care. The Portland Business Journal reported that the system will first be rolled out at St. Charles Health System and the local coordinated care organization for children with Type I diabetes.

May said the platform differs from other, similar offerings (Independa is one prominent example) because the company tailors the content to each patient. Before being given a tablet, patients are assessed on self-efficacy, learning style, and starting knowledge of their condition. The software is then customized to support that particular patient.