Connecting The Dots: Enterepreneurial Networks & Innovation

Networks drive innovation.

Social network analysis views social relationships in terms of network theory consisting of nodes and ties (also called edges, links, or connections). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network

Social networking theorists have stressed the value of networks to individuals, companies, and even countries. Creating and connecting dots has replaced money, sex and real estate as the top topics at cocktail parties and propelled the founder of Facebook to the cover of Time magazine.

Institutions of higher education, like health sciences professional schools,  will likewise benefit from this networking trend and become part of the movement towards creating the entrepreneurial university http://www.huffingtonpost.com/buck-goldstein/the-entrepreneurial-unive_b_516503.html

The concept of the entrepreneurial university goes beyond creating high performance technology transfer operations with eye-popping  invention disclosure, licensing and spinout numbers. Rather, the idea is to create structure and processes, an academic innovation ecosystem, that provides an entrepreneurial mindset to every graduate of the unversity , not just a handfull of faculty superstars in the medical or engineering school.

Universities like the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Stanford, MIT and Harvard have embraced the concept and are encouragng others to do the same. How would you know an entrepreneurial university if you saw one? A few things to look for are:

• A clear definition of innovation and a strategy that drives it
• Leadership from the top
• Robust campus  internal and external networks
• Clearly defined entrepreneurship learning objectives and curriculum design for all students
• Knowledge transfer and knowledge exchange programs
• Recruitment, development and retention HR policies designed to attract and promote entrepreneurial faculty
• A way to measure outcomes and impact

Innovation is our major sustainable competitive advantage. Entrepreneurial universities, and their professional school faculties,  are in a position to solve most of the world's major problems.  That vision is a long way from finding a date online the first week of college.

Medical Cloud Computing Applications Can Generate Revenue & Cut Costs

Get Your Head in the Cloud. Cloud computing can accelerate your growth and save your bottom line.

Twenty five years ago, on my first day of business school, I was issued a 25 pound dumb terminal and a modem.  My fellow students and I used them to connect to a mainframe computer 36 miles away by way of telephone wires so we could do financial analysis and simulations. The most difficult part of the entire process was listening to our families complain about us tying up the telephone lines every night.

Today, I was sent an email solicitation for a cloud-based SaaS (software as a service) application that integrates voice-to-text dictation with a billing and collection software module. Indeed, things have changed.

The IT industry has migrated from direct attached storage (DAS) to nework attached storage (NAS) and storage area networks (SAN). Cloud computing is the next step in IT evolution.

Cloud computing has several key attributes:

• The ability to rapidly provide a service
• A consumption model were users pay for what they use
• The ability to scale up or scale down use without extensive pre-planning
• A secure, direct connection to the cloud without having to recode applications
• Multi-tenancy capabilities that segregate and protect the data

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=cloud+storage+for+dummies

The promise of cloud architecture means you no longer have to have your own server, store your own data, worry about backup systems, update software or deal with down time. The Colorado Telehealth Network, e.g. (http://www.cotelehealth.com), offers over 50 cloud based software applications for medical practices including EMR's, scheduling, billing and collection, voice-to-text dictation, and payroll management. The ability to intregrate scheduling, with clinical systems and  with financial systems reduces the need for repetitive data entry, makes entering data easier, by dication or other interfaces, and gets the bills out quicker and more accurately.

Cloud computing is rapidly changing how doctors do business. What's more, it is another non-clinical career pathway. The best part, though, is my wife no longer complains about the busy signal.

How To Become An Author On Freelance MD

Freelance MD’s primary goal is to deliver quality information to physicians who want to gain freedom and control of their careers and lifestyle.

Of course, this information comes form our contributing authors who are willing to share their time and effort to provide access to the best information and experitise around lifestye, income and career for physicians.

Writing takes time. Closely examining the latest developments takes its time as well. If you're a thought leader with information to share and want to make it available to our readers as one of our writers, we welcome your participation and help!

Of course, you don't need to become a "Contributing Writer" for Freelance MD. You can interact with the community—Including our writers—by leaving comments or using our community forums. You can also write and submit a guest post and have it appear in the main blog and all of our RSS feeds.

But this post is for those who may consider becoming part of the team. Here's a pretty simple FAQ that walks throught some of the common questions about our contributing team. Let's get on with it.

Click to read more ...

How To Turn An Idea Into An Invention: Step 1

Medical invention is dependant upon being attuned to potential, and taking action.

Many important medical devices were invented by physicians. Charles Dotter was a radiologist who, in 1964, accidentally recanalized an occluded right iliac artery by passing a percutaneously introduced catheter retrogradely through the occlusion to perform an abdominal aortogram in a patient with renal artery stenosis. He immediately saw the benefit of his discovery and went on to invent angioplasty, which revolutionized cardiology and created the specialty of interventional cardiology.

For reasons unknown, Dr. Dotter failed to obtain any patents on his invention. The cardiologist Gruentzig went on to perform the technique in coronary arteries and is the one that seems to get the credit for angioplasty while Dotter is relatively unknown. Sadly, Dotter never bothered patenting his big invention and thus never made a dime on it.

Most of the physicians I know have had at least one good patentable idea in their career. Sometimes it is worth getting a patent; often it is not. Regardless of the potential financial benefit, an issued patent looks good on your CV and a patent plaque might look good on your office wall. Finally, an issued patent is recognition that you were (probably) the first to find a particular creative solution to a problem.

No better example of this last benefit can be given than the incandescent light bulb. Most Americans believe that Thomas Edison invented it. In fact, the fundamental idea, of a glowing filament in a vacuum, was published by a pharmacist named Swan and the idea of replacing the vacuum with nitrogen was due to an electrician named Sawyer. Edison, however, manufactured the first bulbs and “loaned money” to an alcoholic patent examiner who gave him some critical patents. Ergo, Edison gets the credit that he never deserved.

Be alert the next time you have a good idea in your practice. Or, when you recognize the need for a new device or procedure. Never stop thinking about how a medical device, you use, could be improved. Above all, don’t censor yourself by assuming that someone else has already thought of your idea. Write your ideas down in a special notebook, which you keep near your desk. Otherwise the ideas will slip your mind. Pick an upcoming slow or off day in the next month and make a note in your calendar to revisit your latest idea.

Maria Simbra MD: Medical Journalist

As a medical journalist, I cover health and medical news for a local television viewing audience. 

My day is spent pursuing newsworthy study findings, the latest FDA approvals, public health issues, health-related seasonal topics, and more. I do the information gathering, interviewing, writing, and on-air delivery. At the end of my day, my work culminates in my report lasting roughly 75-90 seconds, seen on televisions across southwestern Pennsylvania, and in perpetuity on the world wide web.

Others like me, with some variation in the scope of what they cover (business, politics, ethics, education, culture as they relate to medicine), exist in newspapers, magazines, trade publications, and radio industries...and in cyberspace.

While I am an MD with a master's degree in journalism, people who work in health and medical journalism have a variety of backgrounds. Keep in mind, one does not to have to be a doctor to do this well. I have many colleagues who are not MDs who are quite excellent medical journalists. Similarly, you don't necessarily have to earn a journalism degree to be good at this either.

As for my start, as part of my graduate studies I did an internship at the television station, and the news director kept me on as the medical reporter. But there's no one path to this career.  Here are some characteristics I've observed about those who gravitate toward this field — a natural ability and desire to convey complicated topics simply; comfort with brevity, low pay, and the appeal of emotion and lack of appreciation for science; a knack for writing well under pressure. The ones who have been truly successful have found a niche — either in medium, topic, style, organization, or location.

I'm looking forward to sharing insights from my professional experiences here on FreelanceMD! 

Biopharma Commercialization: From Discovery To Delivery

Biotechnology offers physicians opportunities to dramatically improve people’s lives.

Biotech companies develop products in stages, each with specific goals and milestones. Physicians may find career opportunities in any one or all of the stages of this process.   

The commercialization process helps companies identify the most promising potential drugs in research, develop them into innovative therapies, and then deliver them to the patients who need them. It is a dynamic process that enables companies to dramatically improve people’s lives. 

Some may think this process starts with a discovery. A scientist discovers a molecule in the laboratory—and years later, a patient receives a product made from this molecule. How did the discovery become a drug?  And why did it take as long as a decade or more? It advanced step by step. And it started even before the molecule was discovered.

Discovery and Screen. The process starts with an unmet medical need. Scientists indentify targets, or points in the course of a disease, where a potential drug may have an effect. Scientists then test hundreds, if not thousands, of molecules. The goal is to find one or more molecules with biologic activity against a target. Usually, only a small number are active.

Lead Optimization. The field of candidates narrows. Scientists evaluate all the bioactive molecules to identify the lead molecule with the most desirable characteristics. They further optimize this lead molecule to meet the criteria for a viable clinical candidate. 

Pre-Clinical. When a single molecule with the potential to be safe and effective in humans has been identified, it then progresses into preclinical testing—bringing it one step closer to testing in humans.  The product team evaluates safety, prepares to manufacture clinical materials, and seeks regulatory approval to begin Phase 1 clinical trials.

Phase 1. When there is sufficient evidence that a new molecule can be safely tested in human, it progresses to the next stage. Small Phase 1 studies of healthy volunteers or patients with disease gather preliminary data on safety, dosing, and biological activity.

Phase 2. Patients with the disease are studied. The company assesses the safety and efficacy of the molecule and dosing in patients. They begin to assess the value of the product to patients, physicians, and payers—as well as the company.

A portal or gate review at the end of Phase 2 determines whether the scientific and medical evidence and commercial value of the product warrant a significant investment in large clinical trials. The company determines whether it has met regulatory requirements and is prepared to file a marketing application with regulatory agencies. 

Phase 3. Testing involves large numbers of patients. Large-scale studies confirm safety and effectiveness, and the product team plans the submission to regulatory agencies for product approval.

Regulatory Filing. The product team submits a marketing application to regulatory agencies, answers their questions, finalizes labeling and plans for launch. After regulatory approval, the team proceeds with reimbursement submissions in each country.

A portal or gate review determines whether the company is confident in the product’s ability to meet safety, efficacy, and reimbursement requirements. 

Launch. After a decade or more, a molecule has become a product. A discovery—and all those involved its commercialization—can make a difference for patients. To launch a new product, companies must ensure enough supply to meet demand and begin marketing the newly approved product according to the approved label.  

To learn more about biopharma commercialization and related career opportunities, check out the websites for some of the leading biotechnology companies: amgen.com, gene.com, merckserono.com, biogenidec.com, and ucb.com.  This could give you a framework to explore specific opportunities or extend your network to other firms in the industry.

Why You Like Your Idea Is Not Why Customers Like Your Idea

You love the product features. Customers buy it for the benefits.

Doctors, scientists and engineers are generally in love with their solutions. They keep adding features upon features, one cool thing after another. Consider the household TV clicker. Do we really need all those buttons? After all,, most people had no idea how to program a VCR. I suspect the same holds true for TIVO and the rest.

Your goal as an inventor is not to provide features, but rather solve the customer's problem by providing them with a product or service that solves their problem i.e benefits.

Features are different than benefits. As we mentioned in our book, The Medical Practice's Ultimate Feasibilty and Pre-planning Guide https://www.mgma.com/store/productdetails.aspx?id=39093 ,

features are characteristics that physically describe your product or service and how it works. Benefits are what the feature means to the customer and describe how your product or service helps customers solve their problem.

A new surgical tool made of stainless steel that weighs 3 oz and is 5 inches long doesn't trip my trigger.

A new surgical tool that is easier to use, make surgical exposure better and reduces blood loss makes mine flow.

If you are developing a new idea, try this exercise. Divide a piece of paper into three columns. In the first column, list the features of your product or service. In the next column, list a potential benefit to the customer associated with each feature. Finally, for extra credit, write down how each benefit differs from competing products.

Features are cool. Features that don't add benefits are costs.