Mindful Metropolis September 2009 : Page 24
Desiree Vargas, 27 & Ethan Austin, 28 GiveForward.org 211 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago Launched: August 2008 PHOTO: SETH KAMMUELLER Patty Riskind, 43 PatientImpact, LLC 1560 Sherman Ave., Evanston, Ill. patientimpact.com Founded: 2004 Solving healthcare one survey at a time I was working as a consultant to hospitals and free-standing imaging centers in 2004 when my business partner and I decided to update our clients’ archaic method of surveying patients—through the mail. The project brought me back to a business plan I wrote in graduate school for a website that posts patient-written reviews of OBGYNs to help women find a doctor. Combining these ideas, I created an electronic survey for patients to anonymously voice their comments and concerns, which doctors would then use to improve the quality of their care. My partner didn’t have the stomach for investing in prod- uct development, so we amicably split later that year and I formed PatientImpact. The company now has more than 2,000 doctors and other outpatient providers using our elec- tronic survey system, which is better for the environment and 10 times more effective than paper surveys. The physicians use the feedback (typically 30 to 50 completed surveys per doctor each month) to better interface with patients, shorten wait times, make sure the bathroom is clean, etc.—anything to improve the quality of care. Research shows that satisfied patients tend to follow doctor’s orders and get better faster than their counterparts, so we think we’re doing our part to lower the cost of healthcare. We also offer nine training programs for doctors to act on the feedback they receive, such as telephone courtesy and how to handle patient complaints. We expect to hit $2 million in sales this year. In the future we may develop a con- sumer website where patients can rate and review doctors— of course, in collaboration with our customers in the spirit of healthcare reform and transparency. After all, that’s what it’s all about these days. 24 september 2009 Where $5 funds a kidney transplant I told a friend about my idea for GiveForward, a website that connects worthy causes with everyday donors, at a Super Bowl party last year, and she surprisingly knew someone with the same idea. Ethan and I immediately hit it off on the phone, and he moved from California to Chicago a few months later to launch the business with me. As an intern at a non-profit during Hurricane Katrina, I rec- ognized the desire of average Americans to donate directly to afflicted families, and not through large organizations like The Red Cross. At the same time, Ethan had reached $6,000 through a personal fundraising Web page for his first mara- thon sponsored by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. With these personal experiences in mind, we wanted to give everyone with a credible cause—from transplant surgeries to mission trips—a place to collect small donations, even as little as $1, and reach their goal. To start, Ethan and I were able to pool $50,000 in capital, which we spent entirely on site development, and GiveForward. org first went live on Aug. 14, 2008. We now generate revenue through the 3 percent fee charged to every fundraiser once they reach their goal, as well as Google Ads. People are gener- ally honest, but we police the site for fraudulent behavior. So far the site has done amazing things. The largest contri- bution has been $5,000 to help fund a local woman’s kidney transplant , which we’re happy to say was recently granted by the hospital for a reduced rate. Her sister raised a total of $32,000 on our site. We also sponsor “Run for a Reason,” where runners can raise money through GiveForward for any cause and run the Chicago Half Marathon and 5K together on Sept. 13. Like our donations, we started out small. Our ultimate goal is to become something bigger—like the eBay for giving. Christina Galoozis is a Chicago-based freelance writer and editor. She writes about small business and parenting. Visit christinagaloozis.weebly.com.
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