Monday, July 14, 2014

Did you miss last month's Sandbox Summit?

Governor Deval Patrick Conversing with Summit Attendees

Did you miss the the Sandbox Summit? Catch up on what you missed with the official recap from Merrimack Valley Sandbox. You might even spot the back of my head in some of the photos.

You can read my own recap too:
Day 1 Recap
Day 2 Recap Part A

Somehow I haven't gotten to writing "Part B" of Day 2 yet.  The endless waterfall of stuff to do  has a way of taking over the time for multi-part blog posts. :-)



Friday, July 11, 2014

#MIN64 Recap

A health innovation theme and a health innovation oriented host made for a wonderful Mass Innovation Night on Wednesday at athenahealth in the Watertown Arsenal. The crowd was fairly large and the big space accommodated it easily with a central spot for the presentations and "wings" on either side for product tables and experts.
Crowd Listening to Presentations
Highly appropriate to the Watertown location near the River Charles, Charles River Rowing League had a table promoting team-building, networking, and stress reduction through rowing. The Charles River Rowing League (CRRL) brings together expert coaching and world-class equipment to provide local companies with a four-week rowing program. It sounds like a fun way for your work teams to unwind while learning a new sport.
Charles River Rowing League
Old friends from #MIN62 and the recent #PINSMASS01, Gentoo, were there with the Gentoo Vest, a light compression undergarment that helps you manage outpatient infusion equipment and still live your normal life. What else can I say about this that I haven't already said in my previous blog posts? This is a seriously brilliant product. It's several orders of magnitude better than carrying the infusion pump around in a backpack with plastic tubes dangling.
Chris from Gentoo at their Table
Ben from Gentoo Presenting
Know My Patient from Nightingale Apps  helps nurses get to know their patients quickly and  helps them manage info about multiple patients to improve their work flow and deliver safe, efficient,  patient-centered care.
Discussing Know My Patient
Making Care Easier makes it easier for families to manage caring for an elderly family member. It helps everyone take an active part in caring. You can find out how to provide better care for your dad or mom, figure out ways your "care team" can help even if they're in other states. It's all online and you can organize everything from rides to the doctor to buying new shoes from wherever you are - at home, at the office, or on the road.

Making Care Easier

Making Care Easier Presenting
Medstro is a social network for physicians and medical students, giving them a place where they can  interact in a community of their peers. That way they can discuss the latest medical innovations and things they wouldn't want to share with a wider non-specialized network.
Discussing Medstro
It was great to see Cynthia and Maeve from  Increment again.  They were at the Sandbox Summit, at the wonderful Merrimack Valley Sandbox All Ideas Pitch Contest in Lawrence (where kids started spontaneously playing with the O-Rings), and the Merrimack Valley Sandbox Consumer Ideas Pitch Contest in Lowell, to mention a few. They know how to get their O-Rings toys for all kids noticed.  O-Rings are sensory learning playthings that foster developmental skills. Basically, they are four stackable rings of incremental sizes, each with  a different texture, color, density, and filling. This provides opportunities for kids to learn about materials, weights, sounds and colors and stimulate the senses, without even realizing they are learning. Kids just spontaneously start playing with them. Actually, so do adults at Mass Innovation Nights. Increment expects the O-Rings to be in production in December. You can pre-order O-Rings at https://www.trycelery.com/shop/increment.
Liam Trying Out an O-Ring and Wearing "Best Hat" and "Best Prop" of #MIN64

Increment = Top Vote Getters of #MIN64!
One of the more intriguing innovations was Remembrance - Alzheimer Film Therapy. The films are designed to reduce anxiety levels in dementia patients by creating a relaxing environment using scene selection, music and chronotherapy.
Listening to Remembrance Story
SlingAmp is a non-electronic amplifier stand for iPad and other tablets. The curved shape acts as an amplifier and helps hold up the device. It's a simple and elegant idea.

SlingAmp With A Cool Light Box

SlingAmp
ThinLayer dental implant guided surgery system enables dentists to drill an accurate hole for a dental implant.  The system includes protocols, software for planning the implant, and a drill guide.

Thin Layer Dental Implant
There were two Best Props of #MIN64, the O-Rings and the model teeth for the dental implants. Oh, and the O-Rings get Best Hat too :-)
Tied for Best Prop of #MIN64
Athenahealth ruled the Experts Corner (or should I say Experts Wing) with their More Disruption Please (MDP) partnership program.
Experts Looking Expert