At least 15% of Americans live in rural areas, and for many, the chance to enjoy a slower, more peaceful way of life offers a welcome shield against the relentless pace of the city. However, on the flipside of this, many communities in these regions have been left behind by the progress made in healthcare and technology in urban areas.
Steven Burden, former laboratory scientist, saw this divide first-hand when he was stationed at a series of hospitals in South-East Washington state. It was during his time studying for a PhD at Boise State University (BSU) that Steven met his colleague, Clémentine Gibard Bohachek, who had graduated with a PhD in Chemistry in France a few years earlier. In a brush with destiny, Clémentine joined the lab at the BSU, where she subsequently met Steven who had plans to start his own biotechnology firm centered around bio diagnostics. It was a dream pairing, with both Clémentine and Steven feeling highly passionate about this mission to bring better access to diagnostics in areas that are in desperate need of it.
With rural Americans being significantly at greater risk of death from five leading causes, including heart disease, strokes and cancer, compared to their urban counterparts. Severe physician shortages and a lack of access to the latest technology has been impacting rural regions of the US for years. The ever-growing concerning figures inspired Steven to revolutionize the way people begin to measure their health – It was in 2019 Steven became Founder and CEO of Facible Diagnostics.
Facibile’s purpose-driven technology has been designed to provide rapid and accurate detection of viruses, bacteria, fungi and more. The objective is to further the development of a diagnostic testing mechanism, which Co-Founders Clémentine and Steven are working to introduce hospital-grade diagnostics with high accuracy and point-of-care efficiency to rural areas. Facible is setting out to arm hospitals with a new testing and diagnostic method that offers the accuracy of the PCR test and speed of the antigen test. This technology has been partially funded through the National Institute of Health RADx program which they are still currently part of today.
“We don’t use animals in our development process (unlike antibodies), our technology is expandable, adaptable and highly accurate. Clémentine and I have spent years crafting this, and we are excited to be getting into a position where we can make it available to as many people and hospitals as possible,” concludes Steven.
The system revolves around synthetic DNA that is specifically engineered to be able to detect a pathogen. “Not only are we creating technology that doesn’t sacrifice speed for accuracy, but we are making a system that can test for multiple pathogens at once. Our mission is to enable people of all communities to optimize their health by making these diagnostic solutions available at the point of care to everyone – everywhere”, underlines Steven.
The unique Q-LAAD technology incorporates Fluorogenic Logic-gated Aptamers that are designed to detect the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in clinical samples. It has been shown time and again to have a high sensitivity and specificity while having a low limit of detection.
As the Idaho-based company continues to run its public fundraising campaign for both institutional and retail investors to become part of its mission, Steven and Clémentine are striving to show rural America that, when it comes to healthcare, it shouldn’t have to settle for second-best. They see Facible’s cost-effective, real-time diagnostics platform as the pathway towards leveling the healthcare playing field, and to bringing these institutions’ 40-year-old chemistry methodologies into the 21st Century.
“This technology will completely disrupt and replace traditional diagnostics as we know it. Not only are we bringing cutting-edge and disruptive technology to the marketplace but we are raising capital in a more modern way. We don’t use flip phones anymore, so why are we still stuck with 30-year-old diagnostic tools? Now anybody can be part of this positive impact and become an investor in this world-changing solution.” concludes Clémentine.
