Rich Krueger of Hospital IQ

April 28, 2020 thetechtribune

An exclusive Tech Tribune Q&A with Rich Krueger, the founder and CEO of Hospital IQ, which was honored in our:

Tell us the origin story of Hospital IQ – what problem were you trying to solve and why?

When I was looking at healthcare, I discovered that a number of academics and consultants in healthcare had proven that you can do wonders at improving operational performance in healthcare. Though it may be counterintuitive, improving that performance has positive effects on access, patient care quality, and cost. But the approach of consultants and academics takes multiple years, is very expensive, and solves maybe one problem in a way that might not be sustainable. And beyond that, this approach might work for the biggest and most profitable hospitals, but how do you solve it for the other 95% of hospitals in the country that can’t afford the time or resources to work with these consultants and academics? I really wanted to build a system that could scale and support 6,000 hospitals and truly improve operational effectiveness using techniques that we would invent and build over time.

What was the biggest hurdle you encountered in your journey?

There have been two hurdles, and they’re sort of related. One is that most people in healthcare, especially on the provider side, are very clinically oriented. They got into healthcare to serve patients, and that is their focus. They’re exceptional at how to make somebody better. But they didn’t join healthcare to be technologists or software people, and AI is not a natural area for many.

Our system uses predictive analytics, so we can go tell a healthcare provider that they’re going to have 27 of the 32 ICU beds being used next week, and we can do that quite accurately. A challenge has been getting clinicians and administrators to believe that we can do that.

Another challenge was how we take that information and not only present it, but present in a way that’s shareable and very actionable to front line workers? We needed to ensure that our customers have sustained performance based on our predictions, so we incorporate actionable recommendations into the workflow in a way that’s not disruptive and makes people’s lives easier, not harder.

What does the future hold for Hospital IQ?

I think we’ve really built some great solutions, and we’re having incredible success with our customers today. If you look at where we’re able to really contribute and help, it’s the acute care side, inpatient areas, the emergency department, and perioperative areas. I could see us expanding across the whole healthcare continuum and deploying our solutions in the home, rehabilitation facilities, specialized nursing facilities, or anywhere else that patients that need care because ultimately, it’s all connected.

What are your thoughts on the local tech startup scene in Newton?

I’ve lived in the Boston area for a few decades now and I’ve always been in technology. Given the pool of talent and the academic environment, it’s a great place. If anyone is going to start a tech company in any industry, there are very few regions in this country where you want to be. You want to be where the action is, meaning the best resources, the best universities, and great early customers to work with. Boston has been and is still one of those areas.

What’s your best advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?

I love mentoring entrepreneurs – it’s very rewarding. First, I always say that advice is worth what you’re paying for it. Entrepreneurs often get advice and a lot of people have different opinions, but the person running a business, living and breathing that business 24/7, knows it better than anybody on the outside. Don’t ever forget that.

Second, there are a lot of people out there that over-complicate what it takes to grow and build a business, but to me, it’s a pretty simple formula. Build a great product with great people, get customers and make them successful, and you just rinse and repeat. It’s really not any more difficult than that. If you’ve got great products and great customers and they’re happy, you will have a great business. If you don’t have that, it’s very difficult. You have to really hire great people, too.