Telus Health, the Montréal-based health division of Canadian telecommunications giant Telus, has acquired Toronto-based healthtech startup Sprout Wellness Solutions.
Founded in 2012 by Martha Switzer (CSO) and Christina Ford (COO), Toronto-based Sprout offers an online platform that aims to make well-being education more accessible.
Many of Telus Health’s virtual care offerings were developed through its previous acquisitions of healthtech companies.
Sprout uses machine learning and cognitive behavioural science to deliver personalized user experiences and drive engagement, loyalty, and overall health for users by measuring and rewarding healthy behaviour.
The platform includes tools like physical activity tracking, nutrition, mental health, and biometrics, while also integrating with fitness trackers.
Sprout will continue to be available to its users as its integration into Telus Health is underway. The solution will become part of Telus Health’s suite of services for employers to provide to employees through their benefits plan.
“We know preventative health practices can play a major role in reducing one’s chances of developing several chronic diseases,” said Daniel Martz, vice president, virtual care at Telus Health. “More than ever, employers are being called on to play a larger role in supporting the health of their employees and this starts with a benefits plan offering that reflects the needs of today’s workforce,” he added.
Telus has been an investor in Sprout since 2015, starting with an undisclosed strategic investment.
In under a month after Telus Health announced its intent to acquire digital healthcare firm Nightingale, Telus Ventures and the investment arm of Techstars made investments in Sprout in 2016. This investment came out of Nike+’s first accelerator program powered by Techstars, where Sprout was one of 10 tech companies chosen to participate.
Many of Telus Health’s virtual care offerings were developed through its previous acquisitions of healthtech companies, such as Montréal-based EQ Care, Toronto-based Akira Health, and Québec’s ZRx Prescriber, a web-based prescription technology firm.
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In 2021, Telus Health quietly acquired Alliance Pharmacy Group, a service that provides online prescription refills and direct-to-consumer medication shipping.
Most recently, Telus Health rolled out a new online pharmacy service earlier in the year to add to its existing network of healthcare centres and virtual care services.
With the addition of Sprout, Telus Health intends to enhance its suite of virtual care offerings to address the health needs of organizations and their employees.
“[Sprout’s] holistic digital health and wellness engagement platform is designed to educate, engage and inspire individuals to drive behaviour change and improve the overall health and well-being,” a spokesperson for Telus Health told BetaKit. “This offering will help to further bolster our health and wellness solutions for employers while continuing to advance the use of technology in healthcare as we continue to increase access to high quality, proactive health and well-being support for our clients in Canada and around the world.”
Feature image from Sprout’s website