Iora Health’s promise: Patients come first

 A year ago, Jeffrey Davis had just about given up on going to the doctor. He was tired of waiting for physicians who always ran late, tired of being rushed through appointments, tired of never having diagnoses or treatment plans fully explained.

Then a coworker suggested that Davis, 53, of Haverhill, check out the Iora Health practice in Burlington. There he found the attention, care, and personal interest that was so lacking in his past experiences.

“We can sit down and talk about anything,” he said after a consultation that covered a wrist injury, his attempts to quit smoking, and his cholesterol levels. “You have someone watching to help you do what you should.”

Davis is part of a large pool of Americans who have become disenchanted with the conventional approach to medical care. Iora aims to tap this discontent with a business model that the for-profit company hopes will remake the health care system. The company, which was founded by a doctor from Massachusetts General Hospital and a health industry veteran, attempts to deliver cost-saving primary care through a combination of preventative care, technology, and human contact, all pulled together with a simplified payment model.

Iora, headquartered in Cambridge, runs 13 practices in six states, including in Burlington and Dorchester. In total, the practices serve 12,000 patients.

“This is not a little different — it’s very different,” said Dr. Rushika Fernandopulle, who cofounded Iora with entrepreneur Christopher McKown, the husband of Abigail Johnson, chief executive of Fidelity Investments. “We are building a brand-new version of health care.”

In January, the company raised $28 million from seven investors, including the venture capital firms Foundation Medical Partners, of Connecticut and Boston; Fidelity Biosciences, a unit of the Boston financial service company; and California-based GE Ventures, an investment arm of General Electric Co.