Kenshō Health Pivots to Offer Accessible Coach-Led Healthcare


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In response to shifted consumer health behaviors and the need for more persistent, personal healthcare brought on by the pandemic, Kenshō Health has pivoted its core business from a discovery platform for holistic medicine to coach-led connected-care. Dr. Russell Scott Phillips, who has led the Center for Primary Care at Harvard Medical School for more than a decade, has joined as the company’s Chief Medical Advisor to guide its evolution of coaching from today’s direct-to-consumer model to a subsequent value-based complement for primary care physicians and payors.

Kenshō’s shift to coaching comes as a direct response to demand for Care Matching, which it launched in Fall 2021 to deliver 1:1 provider recommendations based on symptoms, goals, and preferences. The company found that customer inquiries for providers consistently evolved into deeper questions about health, nutrition, habits, prescription protocols, and supplements, and within weeks, Kenshō’s coaching business emerged in stealth.

The company’s coaching business is driven by its product which is live starting today. Additionally, every Kenshō Health member receives the care of a health coach who has been certified through a nationally board certified program and The Kenshō Method, which blends Positive Psychology, Integrative Health, Functional Medicine, and Motivational Interviewing to help coaches discover the importance of the health behaviors tied to overall health, and what ideas clients have on how they might incorporate positive change into their lives. Kenshō coaches are experts with a range of experience and accreditation, including advanced degrees in kinesiology, clinical nutrition, elite sports performance, diabetic care, fertility and more. Kenshō makes it easy to get answers to lingering health concerns with optional at-home labs and access to in-house doctors, helping members stick to their habits and stay on track with their goals.

“In my clinical experience, patients who I worked with alongside a Kenshō Health coach saw more profound results in much less time,” said Dr. Anjali Kasunich who joined Kenshō as an in-house physician earlier this year. “The key to this type of success is consistency, which Kenshō’s program is uniquely designed to provide with coach check-ins every two weeks. If you were to translate this same high touch support to the equivalent in doctors office visits, it would cost the patient hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars more to create the same support and iteration of their treatment plan. I wish all of my private practice patients had a Kenshō Health coach.”

How Kenshō Health Coaching Works

  • Take the health test: Kenshō’s proprietary “Health Test” helps members quickly identify areas of imbalance, then get clear on health goals.
  • Meet with your coach: Memberships kick off with a one-hour deep-dive session led by a health coach, who has trained through a nationally board certified program, and creates a personalized health plan, then helps members stay consistent with 30-minute sessions every two weeks.
  • Stay connected: Coaches and members are connected via the Kenshō platform, which integrates coach chat, telehealth visits, lab test ordering, lab results, and three-way connected-communication with physicians for care planning as needed.
  • Stick to your plan: Members use the Kenshō platform to track habits, which coaches review and use to identify the root cause of illness or what might be getting in the way of health goals.
  • Test (Optional): Advanced nutritional testing is available for any client who is concerned their symptoms might be due to a deficiency that their primary care physician did not test for. Kenshō’s in-house physicians consult on results and work with coaches to adjust treatment plans accordingly.
  • Expand care team (Optional): Your coach can help you find and connect with health providers – whether a physician, dietician, therapist, or other – to expand support, aid diagnosis, and offer medical advice or treatment.
  • Feel better than ever: Kenshō’s health coaches are experts with extensive training who have helped thousands resolve common health issues.

“There are 133 million Americans who suffer from one or more chronic health conditions and another estimated 200 million people who may be healthy, but one or more of their habits could undermine their health and result in a chronic disorder. What they need is connected-care and support after diagnosis,” said Harvard’s Dr. Phillips. “Health coaching has the potential to become the biggest innovation to primary care in the past century given its ability to help patients and physicians identify invisible habits and shift behaviors to treat the root cause of illness. Coaching is a simple solution to scale affordable value-based care for improved patient experience, population health, and cost reduction.”

As Kenshō makes its move into primary care, the company and its coaches will make reports available to primary care physicians who want to be involved in evolving their patient’s treatment plan between clinical visits, reducing time, cost, and patient confusion while accelerating the path to resolution.

With more than two decades of experience leading Harvard’s patient and community-centered medical programs, Dr. Phillips shares Kenshō’s belief that there’s an urgent need for greater patient support in preventive and primary care and that coaches are uniquely suited to keep patients on track and support them from diagnosis through to resolution.

“We started Kenshō with a clear mission: to make the world a healthier place, one person at a time. Our shift to coach-led connected-care is a strategic move that gives us the blueprint to do just that, and quickly,” said Krista Berlincourt, Kenshō Health CEO & Co-Founder. “I know from my own experience, having someone who is committed to your health not only helps with accountability, it helps find meaningful resolutions to lingerning or unknown health concerns, all with the oversight of a physician, so you can get back to feeling your best more quickly.”

Today, Kenshō is proud to be moving out of stealth and opening sign-ups for its offering to all members. Additionally, Kenshō has begun serving a handful of businesses looking to give their teams better, more connected mental, physical, and emotional health care, often guided by functional nutrition.

“I quickly saw that Kenshō Health’s coaching was helpful for me and wanted to give my team the same support, especially given the current physical and mental health climate,” said Christina Heller, CEO at Metastage. “Having a dedicated, trained professional available for each of my employees’ to help them navigate their health has not only had a positive impact on our team, but on our business overall. A healthier team always leads to a healthier bottom line.”

For just $99 per month, Kenshō Health members have access to a dedicated health coach that provides consistent support with check-ins every 2 weeks, combined with a platform that allows them to track habits and communicate anytime, anywhere. Today, Kenshō is a web app accessible through all major browsers.

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About Kenshō Health

Kenshō is virtual health coaching designed to care for all of you: mentally, physically, emotionally. Kenshō makes it simple to get answers to lingering health concerns with optional at-home labs and your coach can even consult with one of Kenshō’s in-house doctors for you. The company’s platform makes it simple to track your habits, stay on track with goals, and keep close to your coach.

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