Derry-based technology firm Elemental Software has been sold for an undisclosed sum to UK company Servelec.
The purchase is part of a plan to drive potential digital social prescribing across the UK and Ireland
The firm was set up by former community development workers Jennifer Neff and Leeann Monk-Ozgul.
Social prescribing helps local agencies refer people to a link worker, who can connect them to community groups and statutory services for support.
Nearly 12,000 GPs, nurses, practice managers, social workers and other government staff are already making referrals via the Elemental Software platform.
The company, which employs more than 30 people, says it will continue to operate from current base under its own brand and leadership team.
Servelec provides digital care software across health, social care, education and youth services in the UK, supplying more than 45 NHS trusts and more than 150 local authorities.
Elemental Software chief executive Jennifer Neff said it was really good news for Elemental and for social prescribing.
“Leeann and I founded Elemental with the goal of growing the adoption of social prescribing and helping embed it in health and social care as a way to halt avoidable health inequalities”, Ms Neff said.
“We are really excited about the opportunity that being part of Servelec provides for us to achieve much more than we could on our own.”
Leeann Monk-Ozgul, co-founder of Elemental Software, said bringing together its system with Servelec “will help us in our mission to achieve the best possible health outcomes for even more people”.
Servelec’s chief executive Ian Crichton said the two firms had a huge opportunity to connect people with the community-based programmes and “make a positive impact on their lives”.
