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Category: The Business of Diabetes

novo nordisk matter incubator digital health competition

Novo Nordisk and Matter a Healthcare Incubator Team Up for Digital Health Competition

Chris Stocker 3 Comments

Digital health is the new rage. Well, not so much new, but companies are going all in on digital health. Novo Nordisk is teaming up with startups for a diabetes challenge, aiming to create new digital health tools.

matter health incubatorThis will be a competition that Novo Nordisk and Matter, a healthcare incubator, will be putting on. The competition actually started last week on October 9, I’m a bit behind on my news here. The concept of the competition is quite simple,

The competition will ask entrepreneurs, researchers and other healthcare innovators to create new digital tools to help diabetes patients achieve better health

The initial applications are due October 26 where a group of 10-15 semi-finalists will move on to the net round. The next round will include a demo day which will then narrow the competition down to 2-3 finalists who will receive a $25,000 seed funding and also enroll in a 12-week accelerator where they will work with Novo Nordisk and Matter.

So, for those that may not know what an incubator is when it comes to the tech world, it is basically a company that helps startups grow and develop by offering them office space, networking among other startups in the same niche, office management help (for example providing support for their HR, office supplies, etc.). Incubators are important to startups because it allows them to collaborate with other startups and combine resources to grow their business.

The HBO hit show, Silicon Valley, is based around a tech incubator.

Now, why is this important and why am I sharing it on my site?

Great question.

The answer is quite simple.

It is programs and contests like these that will change the healthcare system. Some of the smartest people in the world will be working at these tech companies and they are starving for seed money and will put tremendous effort into these projects and competitions. They will be working with actual patient data that is provided by Novo Nordisk, so they will be able to utilize real life situations.

Digital health used to be the thing of the future, but in my opinion, it is the thing of NOW. So, we must embrace digital health and welcome it into our lives, because it is what is going to help people living with chronic conditions continue to live a happy, healthy and long life.

What are your thoughts on this competition? Do you know any tech companies that would be interested in submitting an application before October 26? Share this post with them.

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New Perspective on the Cost of Strips

Chris Stocker

A lot of my next few posts are related to the Roche Social Media Summit because it sparked a lot of ideas in my mind to blog about. This one in particular is about our trip through their manufacturing in Indianapolis. I spoke to several people who have toured either this facility or other facilities in the past and they feel that once you seen one, you have seem them all. Well, I have never seen one before, so it was all new and crazy to me.

As the title of this post points out, I have a new perspective on the high cost of test strips. Now, before I begin, let me say, I still think that there are ways to lower the costs a bit, but I can now understand a little better the reasons for these costs. Read More

Interview with Jerry Stoner – Winning Agency from The Pitch

Chris Stocker 2 Comments

Two Sunday’s ago, JDRF was the featured company that two agencies were to create pitches for on the AMC show, “The Pitch”.  The winning ad agency was Bozell.  I was able to have the opportunity to ask Jerry Stoner, their executive creative director, a few questions about the show and the ads they pitched.  For more information about the show, you can check out The Pitch at AMC.

For now, let’s get on with the questions. Read More

How are we fighting high cost of test strips

Chris Stocker 2 Comments

Since I have been diabetic, there is one thing that was constant and was very easy to understand, this disease is expensive.  One of the more expensive items is testing strips.  This is a question that we have all asked before, why do they cost so much damn money?  Well, why do they?  I know this is a business and they need to make money, I totally understand that.  I run a company myself, I understand the bottom line figure that is all so important to the CEO.  But, there has to be something that can be done to lower the costs of diabetes testing strips.

What are these things that we can do?

I don’t know or else I wouldn’t be asking.  I like to ask questions about things that I don’t know about.  I would also like to somehow help others save money on their strips, so how do we work with legislation to get this accomplished?

Thoughts, ideas, concerns, issues, or just general feedback?