Nurse staffing startup gathers $115M

IntelyCare, a tech-enabled nurse staffing platform, raised $115 million in Series C funding led by Janus Henderson Investors, pushing its valuation to $1.1 billion.

Why it matters: Health care workers face unprecedented individual and systemic challenges, with many experiencing psychiatric symptoms beyond simple burnout. Staffing platforms help by giving nurses and hospitals more flexibility.

Details: Other investors joining Janus in the round include Longitude Capital, Leeds Illuminate, Endeavour Vision, Revelation Partners and Kaiser Permanente Ventures.

• Founded in 2014, IntelyCare's previous backers include Longmeadow Capital Partners, Eastward Capital Partners and LRV Health.
• The company says its annual revenue has grown 850% since February 2020 (the month before policymakers declared COVID a national emergency).
• IntelyCare plans to use the funds to expand to new states and deepen investment in its artificial intelligence and data science technology.
• It employs roughly 730 people across 31 states.

By the numbers: A recent survey of more than 500 health workers and first responders published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine found the following rates of psychiatric symptoms:

• Anxiety: 75%
• Depression 74%
• Post-traumatic stress disorder: 38%
• Recent thoughts of suicide or self-harm: 15%

How it works: Quincy, Mass.-based IntelyCare matches full-time, part-time and per-diem nursing professionals with open assignments.

State of play: Tech-powered startups providing relief through the COVID period that have fielded investments include connectRN, TrustedHealth, ShiftMed, Nomad and CareRev.

• Despite the flurry of activity, pinning down the value of nurse staffing startups is tough because of pandemic-driven volume and price spikes across the industry, according to outside investors.