George Hacks is a medical and assistive device hackathon happening this weekend in Washington, DC. The students organizing the event have done a stellar job recruiting sponsors, “need-knowers” (organizations looking for fresh perspectives) and “problem-solvers” (students from all sorts of majors, from public health to international relations to biomedical engineering). I’ve been advising the team and […]
home health care hacks
Flashback: Announcing the Invent Health Initiative
I recently signed on as an advisor to a group of George Washington University students who are organizing a medical and assistive device hackathon on March 24-25, 2018, in downtown DC. Check it out if you live nearby! In pulling together resources for them, I found the memo I sent to senior leaders across the Department […]
Creating space for innovation
It seems like forever-ago that I delivered this keynote at Stanford Medicine X. Innovators are facing even more significant challenges than I could have imagined back in September 2016. And yet I still believe we live in a time of abundant opportunity to connect with people who want to work toward a participatory, innovative future […]
MacGyvering home health care
I’m honoring the contributions of my community colleagues over the years by pulling out some of their best comments and quotes. Sally Okun, in response to “Hacking home health care” (2014) Just the other day I was getting the second pedicure of my life (although I may need to do that again soon) and the manicurist […]
DIY innovation in the hospital
My grandfather, Frank H.J. Figge, was a cancer researcher who faced shortages during World War II and had to improvise to keep his lab going. When he ran short of quartz lenses he remembered hearing that plastic also transmits ultraviolet rays and filled synthetic sausage casings with water to create a perfect — much cheaper — substitute. Nurses have […]
Invent Health
As winter sets in here in DC, I’m warming up with memories of September’s Stanford Medicine X conference. I loved putting together a keynote that highlighted how the maker movement intersects with the e-patient movement — and how private sector and government leaders can benefit. This intersection, and the lessons we are learning from it, are the latest examples […]
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