‘We are proud of the impact we have made with Medimo’

Bart Drost and Richard Lendfers pass the Medimo baton

The founders of Medimo, Bart Drost and Richard Lendfers, will be leaving the company on April 1st. After 24 years and a successful handover to Enovation, they can look back on creating and developing an application that has truly made a difference in healthcare.

Bart Drost (l) and Richard Lendfers.

Pharmacists Bart Drost (54) and Richard Lendfers (49) set out nearly a quarter of a century ago to improve the process of prescribing, dispensing and administering medication. At the time, everything was still done on paper and pharmacists felt that it should all be digital. The goal was to make medication management safer and easier, which led to the development of a digital form on a smartphone. The digital solution that followed evolved into a fantastic company, which, thanks to their pioneering work has been the undisputed leader ever since.

Goal achieved?

Bart: “You could say that. It’s absolutely amazing that with a small team, we’ve had such a huge impact on healthcare in the Netherlands. There are so many healthcare professionals using Medimo, and that’s something of which we can be proud.”

Richard: “We’ve achieved our goal in the sense that we’ve created a really great tool to organise the medication process in care facilities better and more efficiently. On the other hand, our approach has always been that we’re never done, because there’s always room for improvement. Everywhere we look, we see ideas and opportunities. It’s never finished.”

Future-proofing

Thanks to the success of Medimo, the company organically grew into a major player in the market. It went so well that Bart and Richard could no longer combine it with their work as pharmacists, so they decided to fully focus on Medimo.

At a certain point, the opportunity arose to grow further under the Enovation umbrella, becoming part of the Enovation Platform and expanding the possibilities of the medication applications beyond the Netherlands. Richard: “We knew that Medimo could thrive under the Enovation umbrella, and I was happy to be part of that process. By joining Enovation, we knew that our ‘baby’ Medimo would have a future within a larger organisation.”

Highlights?

Bart: “There were many highlights. One was when the G-standard was integrated into the Medimo application(*). Then the addition of the pharmacy module, which enabled closed-loop working and truly refined Medimo. After that, we added electronic medication administration registration and the integration with pharmacy systems of the city pharmacies.”

“On the operational side, it was great that we started with our own employees in Amsterdam. Our first employee is still with us!”

Richard: “One of the highlights for me was the implementation of the MFBs, the medical pharmaceutical decision rules. Also known as ‘clinical rules’ or medication monitoring 2.0, which we were the first in the Netherlands to fully adopt. What’s also incredibly cool is the medication recognition feature that we’re currently rolling out. You can take a photo of a medication box with the app, and it recognises the medication and the quantity, providing additional reassurance for the user. At first, you think: is that going to work? And now that it’s here, you think ‘wow, this is such a great way to support healthcare workers!’ Another development I consider important is ‘medication process 9,’ which isn’t specific to Medimo, but is important for healthcare in the Netherlands.”

Conclusion

Bart and Richard have built a team that, as part of Enovation, can make an even greater impact on healthcare in the Netherlands and North-West Europe. They can look back reassured on a wonderful adventure. Enovation would like to thank Bart and Richard for their achievements and will continue their work in the same spirit.

(*) G-standard: The G-Standard includes all products delivered by pharmacies, such as medication, medical devices and dressings.