Mount Sinai Health System’s Marla C. Dubinsky, MD, and Laurie A. Keefer, PhD, are co-founders of Trellus Health, which has entered into an exclusive multi-year contract with Mount Sinai to commercialize a patent-pending GRITT-IBD™ resilience assessment and
personalized integrated care pathways.

“By applying our validated methodology deeply rooted in science, Trellus addresses the
psychosocial as well as the clinical needs of IBD patients so they can better control their disease and enjoy a significantly improved quality of life,” says Dr. Dubinsky, Professor of Pediatrics, and Medicine; and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “At the same time, we believe we can make a meaningful contribution to controlling health care costs but elevating the quality of care.”

The majority of IBD cases are diagnosed by providers specializing in gastroenterology who may not have access to the much needed resources—including nutritionists, psychologists,
pharmacists, and social workers—found at a Center of Excellence like Mount Sinai, says Dr. Dubinsky. “The idea behind Trellus Health,” she explains, “is to deliver gold standard care to patients with IBD when they need it and where they are and remove any barriers to access of the care they need and deserve.”

At the heart of Trellus Health is its integrated care model, a multidisciplinary approach that equips patients and caregivers with the tools and resources needed for a total care approach that addresses physical and behavioral health. 

Dr. Keefer, Professor of Medicine (Gastroenterology), and Psychiatry, discusses the importance of integrating resilience with the connected health model: “Resilience-driven care injects positive psychology principles into all aspects of chronic disease management,
with a focus on building acceptance, optimism, self-regulation and social support. We want our patients to know that they don’t have to settle for a reduced quality of life because they have a chronic disease. If they’re resilient, they’ll be able to handle whatever comes their way.”

Trellus Health will teach resilience skills to patients through its patent-pending GRITT-IBD methodology. Tasked with this coaching is a licensed multidisciplinary care team of nurses, social workers, and dietitians, who deliver care virtually via telehealth interactions and perform remote monitoring through the TrellusElevate platform. “While the physician is providing evidence-based care, the Trellus Health GRITT team is managing the emotional and behavioral health side of the disease,” points out Dr. Keefer. “We’re all committed to showing how this connected approach to chronic disease management can not only reduce health care costs, but really change the health trajectory of the patient.”

Mount Sinai and EKF Diagnostics, a global medical manufacturer of point-of-care and central lab devices and tests, expect to launch Trellus Health widely. The new venture has also been guided along each step of its incubation and development pathway by Mount Sinai Innovation Partners, the technology commercialization engine at Mount Sinai.  

"We're pleased to partner with Trellus Health in advancing Mount Sinai technology for patients with IBD and other complex chronic conditions through a resilience-driven approach and connected care model that aims to enhance the standard of care and improve outcomes," says Erik Lium, PhD, President of Mount Sinai Innovation
Partners and Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Innovation Officer at Mount Sinai.