Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 10

181 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 10 FONEMED idea was brought together by a group of investors who really believed in the future of telemedicine and the benefits of providing remote healthcare to those in need. I joined early on and, right from day one, I believed that this could be the future of healthcare and addressing the need we have in communities. “One event that really brought some attention to the company and increased our presence was the 9-11 terrorist attacks because Beth Israel Hospital (now Mt. Sinai) was a client then. When the second plane hit the Twin Towers, they sent all the calls to us, while the situation was unfolding. Everyone was scared. People felt somewhat relieved to be able to speak with someone during such a horrific time. In many cases all we could do was offer suggestions such as close your windows, turn off your air conditioning units, and stay low. But people felt they weren’t alone and they were grateful for a compassionate voice on the other end of the call. “Word-of-mouth from our clients got out about what we can do, and what benefit it is to have 24/7 nurse services available. When you look at the cost of visiting an emergency department after hours – if it can be prevented, it only makes sense to have such a program available.” BVM: What kind of growth have you experienced? Brophy: “Over the years we expanded from having that one physician practice to having about 2300 groups under our client umbrella right now. Initially, we only had 250 patients with our first contract, and now we provide services to more than 25 million people. It took 25 years to get to that 25 million, so my pitch when I’m talking to start-up groups and entrepreneurs is just keep your head down and keep at it, as long as you believe what you’re doing and see a future for it. “For Fonemed, in particular, I’ve talked about Fonemed CEO, Charlene Brophy