Startup launches service that translates radiology reports into 5th-grade reading level

A startup company has launched a service that translates radiology reports and other physician notes to a fifth-grade reading level for patients.

Claymont, Delaware-based Vital announced the debut of its Doctor-to-Patient Translator Aug. 8. The product uses the latest large language models and natural language processing to simplify any imaging or lab results, physician notes or discharge summaries so that consumers can better comprehend them.

“I have seen firsthand how misinterpretations of the information in medical notes can cause confusion and distress for my patients,” emergency physician, co-founder and CMO Justin Schrager, MD, said in the announcement. “Truly engaging patients in their care is achieved by ensuring they have a clear understanding of their condition and treatment plan,” he added later. “The Doctor-to-Patient Translator is harnessing advanced AI in ways that can really help patients understand and act on information more meaningfully.”

Vital believes its product can help to reduce the likelihood of adverse events and malpractice claims by better involving patients in their care plans. The translator is available to hospitals that use Vital’s ERAdvisor and CareAdvisor platforms, and it is also offered for free to patients at vital.io/translate.

Schrager and colleagues said “significant rigor” was taken to test the technology’s efficacy. A panel of physicians analyzed almost 2,000 DTP Translator outputs from real-world medical notes and labeled only 0.6% as unsafe, containing inaccurate or incomplete information from the summary.

Mint.com creator Aaron Patzer and Schrager first launched Vital in 2019, with more than 100 hospitals and 30 health systems now using its technology. The company has raised more than $40 million to date, completing a series B funding round in March. Those contributing included Transformation Capital, Threshold Ventures and Patzer.