Local startup changes how mental health practices do business

Nate Maingi, a Kenyan native who worked as a social worker in Massachusetts, was frustrated by the system’s outdated software and inability to organize paperwork, and therefore created a solution – Therapy iQ, an all-in-one management software product. 

Maingi, who has a business background and moved to the U.S. in 2003, had to adapt to a major culture shock while supporting his son and working as a social worker, where he quickly became acquainted with the struggle of limited resources social workers are facing. 

“I thought this job was going to help change the world, but there was an overwhelming amount of paperwork and software issues. We were promised a working load of 18 cases, but it was really 25 and therapists were rare to come by. We were almost serving in that role on top of everything else,” he said. “At that point, I knew I had a love of tech and was doing freelance work. I decided I could get more involved on the technology side and still have a big impact in helping people.”

Maingi, with his business partner and wife, Amy Query, founded Therapy iQ in Tampa. Therapy iQ, which was incorporated in 2021, is a practice management software that adapts to any workflow in any clinical application without the need for third-party software.

Query has been a strong operational business leader in the medical industry for over 15 years. She recently established and ran a mental health clinic with a staff of over 20, using Therapy iQ’s software.

Therapy iQ can track every action including appointments, client engagements and performance, signatures, and therapists/doctor’s notes in real time. It makes for easier record keeping and end-of-the-year audits. It is currently used in 23 practices and has 400 unique logins.

When the startup was in the making, it operated similarly to a “Geek Squad” for businesses and evolved into web development and a marketing setup that was capturing leads. One of the early companies to work with Therapy iQ was a mental health clinic specializing in substance abuse. It had contracts with the Department of Corrections (DCI) and other groups managing treatment plans for those who were formerly incarcerated and had to legally complete sessions.  

The management was operating on spreadsheets and needed a software system to organize the paperwork and records for patients. 

“The documentation was being done by hand and they had 34 groups a week. We came in and built out their system and at the end, they were able to streamline all those contracts and it simplified the workflow,” Maingi said. “Think of our system as a Lego set. You can build whatever you’d like on our software. There’s no learning curve, we adapt it to you instead of you having to adapt to it – unlike many systems today.” 

The software also enables alerts for late payments from clients/patients and clinical updates. 

Therapy iQ, which is largely bootstrapped, has raised $1.5 million in seed funding from angel investors and is readying to launch another round to raise another $1.5-$2 million. 

Today, Therapy iQ has 11 employees with seven based in Florida who all work remotely. 

The startup has garnered most of its clients by word of mouth and plans on hiring additional team members.