This founder’s own pain point became too painful; Why he’s back to embracing the loss that sparked his startup

When healthtech founder Chris Jones pivoted away from the painful memory of losing his son — a catalyst for launching his medical records startup — he shelved a vital piece of the “why” behind both his company and his passion, Jones said.

“I never understood what my power was — not just the technology — but just in the story,” he said, reflecting on his five-year journey since founding MatchRite Care, as well as iterations of the strategy that saw him focus on providers and facilities instead of the human element. “I had to go back to what we started with in 2019; it’s about the patient.”

The first patient on Jones’ mind: his late son, Christopher “CJ” Jones Jr.

Chris Jones and Christopher “CJ” Jones Jr.

CJ — who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in 2008 at the age of 5 — missed a critical opportunity for a clinical trial because of a routine clerical delay that is common within the current medical records system, Jones said. A year later, his son died.

Jones ultimately turned his grief into the foundations of MatchRite Care — a healthcare technology company committed to providing patients with a centralized platform to access, manage, and share their medical records. He was on a mission to stop preventable delays and complications like CJ’s from continuing within the industry.

But after sharing his story at investor pitches, events like Pure Pitch Rally and Opportunity Hub, and at a range of other venues, Jones said, the constant reminder of his son’s death became too painful.

“That pushed me out of the limelight a little bit, because I became a story, not really the technology,” continued the former healthcare IT director. “His face was everywhere. I couldn’t do it. And it became a sad story. I remember talking to one group, I was like, ‘We’re more than just a sad story. We actually know technology.’”

“I got away from it,” Jones said of his son’s story. “I looked for people on the outside and said, ‘Let’s focus on technology. Let’s work on selling to facilities.’”

Chris Jones, MatchRite Care, holds a photo of his son, CJ, during filming for the TV show “Advancements” at Union Station; courtesy photo

But in the past 18 months, Jones has shifted back to focusing on patients first and embracing how the loss of his son can help others — even getting to share his personal journey on the award-winning series “Advancements,” hosted by Ted Danson.

“Sometimes, when your why is so strong, it can deviate from the business side of it,” Jones explained. “So I let my feelings around him being seen and not really telling my story shifted me to where I was looking for everybody else to define what MatchRite should be. But I’m finally in the most comfortable space now and I can define it and I’m comfortable talking about him now.”

Telling the full story

MatchRite Care’s mission is to empower patients by enhancing their access to essential health information, Jones said, ultimately supporting a more informed and engaged healthcare experience through its centralized medical records platform.

Christopher Jones, MatchRite Care; Pure Pitch Rally 2019; photo by Mikaela Wendel

“We want to help patients with acute conditions — or patients that go to so many different doctor’s offices — unify their records,” he explained.

“MatchRite is trying to help the patients tell their full story,” Jones continued. “Most solutions — other than MatchRite — are focused on giving facilities the power to tell the patient, ‘Here’s where your records are; here’s this information you need to know. Our goal was looking at it backwards. So how do we help the patients tell their own story?”

The platform also allows patients to add their own notes to their medical records, Jones noted, and it includes AI tools to provide further solutions for the patients, and helps connect patients to appropriate clinical trials.

Once he shifted his team and company back to the patient and away from wholesale to facilities, Jones said business has really started to take off again.

“We have great technology for sure,” he continued. “A lot more people are looking at us now because we can be the hub of medical records. We built this over the five years or so, but we’re handing it off to the patient. You can connect anywhere, anytime.”

“We were in Portugal earlier this year and presented MatchRite,” Jones added. “Now we’re looking at even going to the (European Union).”

Facing new opportunity

“Advancements” — an information-based educational television series that explores recent developments taking place across several industries and economies — approached Jones in March about sharing his story on the show, he noted.

Chris Jones, MatchRite Care, holds a photo of his son, CJ, during filming for the TV show “Advancements” at Union Station; courtesy photo

Chris Jones and Christopher “CJ” Jones Jr.; courtesy photo

At the time, he said, he was still in the middle of shifting priorities at MatchRite and wasn’t quite ready to share about his son. That all changed once he started seeing momentum this summer.

“I realized that I’ve got to get in the forefront of this and really tell the story,” he continued. “That’s the most powerful part of it.”

“I understand how important it is to have a face like mine in this space,” Jones added, “because there’s not a lot of minorities in this space.”

In early November, the “Advancements” production traveled to Kansas City and filmed the segment at Union Station, at the offices of Bionexus KC and Digital Health KC.

“I’ve always been able to lean on them when I needed to,” Jones said about the healthcare innovation ecosystem. “The insights of these people is what kept me moving forward. So I thought it was important that I highlight where I came from, what helped me get through some of this stuff, and the people I got connected with.”

“Their goal is to make Kansas City a health hub,” he continued. “And I want to make sure that I’m helping to catalyze that, too. So there’s no way I was going to get any national attention and not fly everybody to KC and tell them about it.”