editor’s desk
The Blurry Line Between Tech & Touch
logan plaster
editor-in-chief logan@telemedmag.com
No magazine launch would be complete without a cake. Thanks to everyone who came out to the Ace Hotel rooftop and made our launch event memorable.
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Issue 2
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Telemedicine
Welcome back. This summer marked the 30th anniversary of Back to the Future, the franchise that promised us flying cars and hoverboards by the year 2015. We’re still waiting for cars that fly – AeroMobil promises one by 2017 – but thanks to a strong Kickstarter campaign, Hendo might be bringing the world its first working hoverboard. Here’s hoping it works on water. We all love a peak around the corner, a glimpse of what’s next. That spirit of innovation was front and center at the American Telemedicine Association (ATA) annual meeting in Los Angeles, where we rolled out the inaugural issue of this magazine. On ATA’s exhibit floor, sellers hocked a dizzying array of new gadgets and software platforms. There were consumer-facing gizmos like Tyto, the all-in-one at-home diagnostic tool with the sleek form-function of an iPhone. Tyto could arm a parent at home caring for a sick child with a range of intuitive medical-grade diagnostic tools, all for about $200. There were also industry-facing software services like HealthGrid, which allows doctors to use any video platform – even FaceTime – for a HIPAA compliant patient encounter. In the telemedicine market you can be forgiven for going a bit wide-eyed over such high tech wizardry. We geek out in this issue over two such products, and with good reason. There’s 5CS, Will the killer the emotion-capture technology which charts telemedicine solution millions of data points on micro facial expressions (story on page 8). The technology has been be high touch or high available for more than a year, but only now is it tech? Synchronous or being trialed to aid in clinical psychiatry. The Em- asynchronous? Where patica E4 wristband, the research wearable used by on this spectrum will NASA and MIT, can detect stress with an electro- we find the balance dermal activity sensor. Scott Jung reviews this and between quality and three other sci-fi-worthy research wearables in his efficiency? tech review on page 18. But while we love our new, shiny toys, if a larger theme emerged from this issue, it was this: innovation is about more than adding complexity. Indeed, higher tech doesn’t equal better healthcare. Sherpaa CEO Jay Parkinson lays down the gauntlet on page 24, eschewing video telemedicine in favor of patient encounters via text and email. Patients don’t want high tech, high def video, says Parkinson (who has impressive usage stats to back up his claims). Sometimes, a little technology can help us go back in time – and get a lot more personal. Call it Uber for primary care – Medicast, TrueCare24, Orunje and Pager are all bringing back the old school house call (review on page 12). Just don’t try to pay for the visit with a dozen eggs. Mark Plaster, in his essay on page 37, describes this dichotomy as “high tech” vs. “high touch”. But wherever you find yourself on the spectrum, one thing is certain: the market is ripe for innovation. Digital health investment funding is at historic highs and no clear leaders have yet dominated the market. Will the killer telemedicine solution be old school or new? Synchronous or asynchronous? High touch or high tech? Where on this continuum will we find the balance between quality and efficiency? As with most things in life, the answer lies not at one pole, but in the murky middle. And this answer could do a lot more than make an investor millions. It could breath life into our healthcare system.