What You Should Know:
– Tampa General Hospital (TGH) Cancer Institute has partnered with Reimagine Care to integrate an AI-enabled virtual cancer care program into its clinical pathways.
– The collaboration, backed by an investment from TGH Ventures, provides 24/7 symptom monitoring and triage to reduce emergency department visits and administrative burden on oncologists. This move aims to expand capacity and improve patient outcomes across Florida, a state facing 115,000 new cancer diagnoses annually.
Reimagine Care and TGH Cancer Institute Collaborate to Scale Virtual Cancer Care and Reduce ER Visits
In the high-stakes world of oncology, the battle is often lost in the “in-between”—the hours after the clinic closes and before the next appointment. It is in this gap that symptoms escalate, anxiety spikes, and avoidable emergency room visits occur. Today, Tampa General Hospital (TGH) announced a strategic move to close that gap, partnering with Reimagine Care to deploy an AI-enabled virtual care platform across its Cancer Institute.
The collaboration is not just a vendor agreement; it is a structural shift in how one of Florida’s leading academic medical centers delivers care. Backed by an investment from TGH Ventures, the hospital’s venture arm, the partnership integrates Reimagine Care’s 24/7 virtual nursing and symptom monitoring directly into TGH’s clinical workflows.
This initiative addresses a critical math problem: Florida sees roughly 115,000 new cancer diagnoses annually, and the demand for acute care is outpacing the supply of oncologists.
The “Always-On” Oncology Model
Reimagine Care’s platform operates as a digital extension of the clinical team. Using AI to triage patient concerns and proactive symptom monitoring, the system identifies “red flags” before they become emergencies.
“Cancer care doesn’t stop when clinic doors close,” said Dan Nardi, CEO of Reimagine Care. “We see our role as extending the reach of the care team into patients’ homes: constant connection, early detection of red flags and reducing the stress of navigating symptoms between visits.”
For oncologists, this alleviates the administrative crush of after-hours calls and documentation. By filtering routine inquiries and managing symptoms remotely, physicians can focus on high-value tasks: diagnosis, treatment planning, and clinical research.
Reducing the ER Burden
The primary clinical goal is to keep cancer patients out of the Emergency Department (ED). ED visits are not only costly but often dangerous for immunocompromised patients. Reimagine Care’s model has already demonstrated measurable reductions in ED utilization and hospital admissions at other major cancer centers.
Dr. Abraham Schwarzberg, Chief of Oncology at TGH, emphasized the proactive nature of the tech. “By partnering with Reimagine Care, we gain both a dedicated team and powerful technology that allow us to anticipate and intervene before symptoms worsen, lowering hospital and ED visits while maintaining the highest levels of care,” Schwarzberg noted.
