A conversation with author/MD Jason Hwang on barriers to innovation in healthcare, disruptive innovation in health and technology, big versus small companies, medical education, and baseball.
OTC hearing aids are a disruptor. I've mentioned I'm using Apple Airpods as hearing aids to my ENT/audiologist twice, and they are dismissive that they are OK. There is a market here for an audiologist to embrace OTC devices and charge for setup, etc. But other than Costco, I haven't found a provider to do that yet. Those "$64,000 Question" sound booths are expensive and $3000 for a hearing aid is a nice revenue source. Kardia mobile devices are a disruptor. To his credit, my electro-cardiologist told me to get a Kardia device to check my ECG (I have aFib), but if it indicated I had aFib, they would get out the "industrial-strength", "FDA-approved", ECG machine to double check it -- and get the billable hours....
OTC hearing aids are a disruptor. I've mentioned I'm using Apple Airpods as hearing aids to my ENT/audiologist twice, and they are dismissive that they are OK. There is a market here for an audiologist to embrace OTC devices and charge for setup, etc. But other than Costco, I haven't found a provider to do that yet. Those "$64,000 Question" sound booths are expensive and $3000 for a hearing aid is a nice revenue source. Kardia mobile devices are a disruptor. To his credit, my electro-cardiologist told me to get a Kardia device to check my ECG (I have aFib), but if it indicated I had aFib, they would get out the "industrial-strength", "FDA-approved", ECG machine to double check it -- and get the billable hours....