Innovation & Job News

White Pine Systems secures financing, plans to hire

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

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Entrepreneurship, Healthcare, Software Design

Ann Arbor

The story behind White Pine Systems is very personal for its founder, Doug Dormer.

Dormer grew up in a house where both of his parents were blind and his dad suffered from diabetes. One day his dad fell sick, was taken to the wrong hospital --one that didn't know his medical history-- and died waiting on a gurney because doctors didn't realize the seriousness of his situation.

That led to the creation of White Pine Systems, a provider of online personal health records. The company helps make sure doctors get the most information about a patient's medical history so they can maximize the effectiveness of treatment and avoid misdiagnosis.

"He obviously has some passion behind this," says Jonathan Smolowe, vice president of sales and marketing for White Pine Systems.

The downtown Ann Arbor-based firm employs about a dozen people on a full- or part-time basis, along with some independent contractors. 3-year-old White Pine just went live with its product and is watching customers start to line up. Helping make that happen is $450,000 in financing from angel investors, including $225,000 from the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund. The company hopes to hire a few more people soon.

"It's really starting to get off the ground now," Smolowe says.

Source: Jonathan Smolowe, vice president of sales and marketing for White Pine Systems
Writer: Jon Zemke