Innovation in TelemedicineBrandon M Welch, MS, PhD
Assistant Professor, Biomedical InformaticsDirector, Telehealth Research and Innovation Program
Disclosures
• Doxy.me founder and shareholder• ItRunsInMyFamily.com founder and shareholder
Clayton M. Christensen
Sustaining Innovation
Disruptive innovation
Innovation
Time
Light home users
Sustaining innovation
Disruptive innovationAverage home user
School/work users
Designers/developers
Perf
orm
ance
/Fea
ture
s
Use case #1: Transportation
1908 Locomobile 40 Runabout
1909 Ford Model T
Automobile growth
Use case #2: Computing
Mainframe computers
Personal Computers
Computer Growth
Use case #3: Telemedicine
Telemedicine is disruptive to traditional care
Time
Counseling
Disruptive innovationNon-serious diagnosis
Emergency situations
Surgery
Perf
orm
ance
/Fea
ture
s
Telemedicine Technology
Disruptive telemedicine technology
Must be easier and cheaper than status quo
Designed for the everyday person (doctor)
Easy to use + inexpensive > features + power
You can’t drive disruption by spending a lot of money
Not a single product, several with a common theme
Complicated and expensive products will still be around
Thank you
Brandon M Welch, MS, PhD
@WelchBM
/in/welchbm
Assistant Professor, Biomedical Informatics Center, MUSC
Common theme
• Inventions that change the world are disruptive• Disruptive innovations make technology simple and inexpensive -> available to
everyday person • You can’t drive disruption by spending a lot of money on expensive and complicated
technology• Disruptive inventions cause rapid change in industries, even affecting other industries • While not comparable to start, as they become more widely adopted their
capabilities catch up with and exceed previous technology• Not a single product, several with a common theme• Complicated product still available for specific use cases, but it isn’t the one that
changed the world
Telemedicine is disruptive to traditional care
Time
Perf
orm
ance
/Fea
ture
s
Telemedicine potential
• Reduce costs• Increase access• Improve healthcare
• Could change the world
Why isn’t telemedicine used everywhere?
• Complicated– Requires tech support and training
• Expensive to setup and run• Limited to large healthcare
organizations using grant funding• Not patient friendly
Telemedicine is disruptive
• Going to clinic for simple
Telemedicine barriers
• Complicated• Expensive• Hard to use
When innovating telemedicine solutions
• Easy to use + inexpensive > features + power• Simple• Intuitive: no training required • Inexpensive• Leverage widely available technology (mobile, web, computers)• Complicated and expensive propriety telemedicine systems are
likely to be obsolete in a few years
Sustaining innovation
• Incremental improvements• Builds on existing technology and process• Operates within the existing business model• Make current products better, faster, stronger• User demand drives sustaining innovation• Low risk
