Berlin-based Lillian Care, a healthcare startup co-founded by serial entrepreneurs and veterans of the German healthcare industry, announced it has raised €2.4 million in pre-seed funding, with a projected commitment of an additional €2.4 million at seed stage, bringing total funding commitments to €5 million. The pre-seed investment will go towards ensuring primary care delivery in underserved areas among a growing shortage of general practitioners.
The new investment was led by Nina Capital, a specialized venture capital firm with deep expertise at the intersection of healthcare and technology. Investors who also participated in the round include Aescuvest, Caesar Ventures, OHA BTG, Calmstorm and professional angels and successful founders such as Björn von Siemens, Wieland Sommer, Inga Bergen and Fredrik Debong.
Founded in 2023, Lillian Care’s platform enables nurses to perform as the first point of physical contact for outpatients with health complaints, performing 60% of all treatments with supervision and support delivered digitally by doctors. This approach ensures that doctors are freed up to focus their time and attention on more complex cases. Supported by the platform’s data-driven alignment of processes and clinical decisions, Lillian Care provides quality medical care, a reintroduction of local healthcare to underserved communities where practices have closed, and improved working conditions for medical staff.
“We are building a network of hybrid primary care practices supported by a comprehensive technology stack that enables fast setup, streamlined workflows for interdisciplinary care teams and telemedicine treatments,” said Linus Drop, founder and chief executive officer of Lillian Care. “In Germany, the shortage of primary care physicians is a concern, especially in rural areas. To ensure medical care, we offer physicians and nurses an innovative care model that takes into account the needs of modern professional care teams and takes inspiration from the lessons learned by healthcare systems internationally.”
This pre-seed funding will see Lillian Care grow its network of hybrid practices, targeting a market-leading position by 2030, cementing its reputation by delivering high satisfaction levels for patients, nurses and physicians while securing value-based care contracts with health insurers. The funding comes at a time when c.4,000 primary care physicians’ offices are already unoccupied and affected communities and citizens clearly realize the related limitations. Studies predict that 11,000 primary care physician seats will be unfilled by 2035, which will have serious consequences for Germany, where 40% of all counties are affected by physician shortages. In response, regulators and health insurance providers have introduced new initiatives creating strong tailwinds for the success of Lillian Care’s innovative care model and network.
“The Lillian Care model represents a disruptive innovation that aims to involve nurses in the management of chronic and elderly patients, initially focusing on rural areas and small cities, but with the potential for broader application within the healthcare system. Such models are increasingly recognized as essential for ensuring the long-term sustainability of healthcare systems,” said Marc Subirats, a veteran of the telehealth industry and General Partner at Nina Capital. “Lillian’s adaptation to the German situation is the best we have seen to provide close-to-home general practice services for an increasingly underserved and ageing society.”
