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#COVID19 hit while I was balancing ER shifts and getting my own #startup off the ground. The innovation world and health care don’t often mix well, but I was able to build an approach I call “The Startup Approach to a Pandemic”
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Thanks to @MacEmerg for hosting this interview.
ER is probably the most startup friendly of all the medical specialties, we’re all a bit crazy, get impatient with bad systems and constantly snipe at administrators and dream about changing things one day. https://twitter.com/MacEmerg/status/1279483536278540289
ER is probably the most startup friendly of all the medical specialties, we’re all a bit crazy, get impatient with bad systems and constantly snipe at administrators and dream about changing things one day. https://twitter.com/MacEmerg/status/1279483536278540289
Medicine is very conservative and is highly resistant to change. Covid presented a new challenge to the system and largely it was mavericks who pushed the envelope on new therapies (i.e. anti coagulation, steroids) that are now starting to bear fruit. https://twitter.com/KashPrime/status/1247333141095878662?s=20
This is the framework I came up with, gleaned from lessons at @ycombinator's excellent @startupschool and from great communities like @IndieHackers and #HackathonHackers. 'I call it 'I step' to a solution:
Leadership principles are slightly different for a medical cause vs a startup, namely that the mission should always comes first - stay humble, avoid self promotion, avoid the cult of the founder that’s often promoted in media. This kind of work won’t make you a billionaire.
Find and build a team of selfless people with the same motivations. If someone else or another team is doing a better job, share what you have, join their team and work together. Thanks to @sulemaan and team for showing me the right way to lead something like this.
Back to IISTEP: 'Identify' a problem that needs a solution; this is harder than you think... I spent a year trying to build something nobody wanted. No idea works without testing if there’s a need for it. This involves user testing and finding the elusive 'product market fit'
Invite: Find a cofounder/team, Make it an open source, use an open collaboration model, get organized - use modern tools like Slack, Google drive, Zoom, Take notes.
Companies like @SlackHQ gave free access, @shopify donated volunteers to many causes. https://slack.com/intl/en-ca/resources/using-slack/covid-help
Companies like @SlackHQ gave free access, @shopify donated volunteers to many causes. https://slack.com/intl/en-ca/resources/using-slack/covid-help
SprinT to a Solution: quickly build your solution, whether it is an app, a design concept, or a service. Get it out there to test and get feedback.
Evaluate: collect metrics and survey users. Keep improving what you're offering
Evaluate: collect metrics and survey users. Keep improving what you're offering
Pivot: more often than not, you'll be completely wrong about some of your basic assumptions. Quickly discover why and pivot to a new idea and keep working.
Here are some case studies on how this works in practice:
Here are some case studies on how this works in practice:
@conquercovid19 was a group that quickly tried to find PPE for frontline healthcare providers in the crazy days in March. People who never met in person were able to raise millions of dollars and deliver millions of PPE items across the country https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-a-humanitarian-medical-response-for-canada-until-covid-19-i-couldnt/
With #Masks4Canada we pushed for mandatory masking in indoor spaces. We were able to get an open letter signed by 1500 health professionals and have convinced several key governments to act @AmyTanMD @jkwan_md @https://www.blogto.com/city/2020/06/face-masks-mandatory-in-ontario/
For contact tracing, our team was able to study the issue and design a workflow that we presented to the Ontario and Federal governments. Elements were used in the upcoming government app, and we remain in contact to provide advice to both governments
With @FrontlineConnex we were able to connect patients to their families at a time when it was too risky for in-person visits, using tablets donated by donors and industry. @greenwaldEM @HumairaFSaeed https://twitter.com/HospiceGT/status/1263861521358163969?s=20
With @MedsCritical we are actively working to secure Canada's drug supply and make sure we have enough medication to treat Covid19 patients
@amanchatha @rebeccayu https://twitter.com/KashPrime/status/1278490978832261121?s=20
@amanchatha @rebeccayu https://twitter.com/KashPrime/status/1278490978832261121?s=20
With modern tools, making a difference is easier than ever, but you need to be organized and determined to see the job done.
In a crisis, you can never assume the people in charge have everything handled.. and chances are they'll need your help more than anything!
In a crisis, you can never assume the people in charge have everything handled.. and chances are they'll need your help more than anything!
@paulg @sarthakgh @tobi @cameronks @farid__jalali @cliffreid @EMManchester @srrezaie @picardonhealth #COVID19 #COVID19 #coronavirus #coronavirususa #medtwitter #FOAMed #foamcc @masood_sameer @samir_grover @emedtox @EricTopol @realHayman @ketaminh @PhalpherMD @DFisman
