AMA invests $15 million in Health2047
In a Jan. 11 press release, the American Medical Association announced its $15 million investment in the innovation health care company Health2047. A Silicon Valley-based company, the new startup is aimed at driving change at the system-level by collaborating with physicians, leading companies and entrepreneurs. In a continued, valiant effort to better public health and advance the practice of medicine, the AMA has become the startup's founding partner in this mission.
The goals for 2047
Founded on a "mission to develop, guide and commercialize disruptive ideas that advance – at the system level – the practice of health care," Health2047 is working toward the future. The organization – the first of its nature in the industry – has a vision for the nation's health care system that they aim to reach by the year 2047. These goals are focused on all those who make up the industry – patients, physicians, providers and partners. In just over two decades, Health2047 sees a nation where patients receive the best possible outcomes, physicians have greater career satisfaction, providers streamline important administrative operations and partners secure financial rewards for their investments.
According to the organization, it will incorporate physician opinion and perspective, tests prototypes and concepts, and use a creative, multi-disciplinary approach when tackling projects. This will force the group to look at new angles and find viable solutions to some of health care's biggest challenges. Health2047 will hire researchers, social scientists, designers and engineers to work closely with all stakeholders including providers, policy experts, venture capitalists, technology providers as well as individuals. By challenging conventions, the innovation health care company is ready to find real solutions for change.
Making changes
According to Health2047's CEO Douglass Given, M.D., the technology community, as well as others in the industry, have often overlooked the physician's perspective when it comes to making changes, reported EHR Intelligence. Drawing on the profound insight of physicians is one of the primary goals of the organization, as noted above. It goes without saying that physicians should be able to provide some of the most detailed, focused and perhaps eye-opening ideas for change.
According to the AMA, there are currently 1.1 million physicians nationwide. These are the individuals who see, hear, live and breath the challenges of the health care industry day in and day out. Leveraging their perspective and creating a trusted partnership, Health2047 could be led to truly valuable innovations for creating new tools and resources. The organization has outlined that physicians will submit ideas, inform concepts, test prototypes and in turn, gain inside access to advanced solutions.
An investment for the future
In a press call with EHR Intelligence, Doctor James L. Madara, CEO and Executive Vice President of AMA, said that the motivation behind the investment and collaboration with Health2047 was to improve health care IT to benefit both the patient and the physician in the evolving industry. The combined efforts of the two organizations will focus on improving the delivery of health care as well as health outcomes by creating and using new technologies, and developing new products.
Madara noted the "abundant white spaces inviting technological solutions" that they plan to confront. Additionally, he told EHR Intelligence, there has been a change in the site of care for physicians due to the shift from acute to chronic disease, moving from ambulatory into the home. This movement will likely influence the health technology of tomorrow as it is currently taking up a considerable amount of the national health care spend. Consequently, by making the investment in this startup there are three areas that AMA can focus on, according to EHR Intelligence. These ares moving forward are the restructuring of medical education, structuring systems to deal with the chronic condition burden, and recreating physician practices to create more time with patients.
"[W]e're now formalizing this in a way that connects our broad knowledge, our broad experience – which we continue to explore because this is all evolving, we have to have our finger on that pulse during this time – and to take this knowledge, our connection with physicians, our content expertise, and apply that in some bridging way to the technology center in Silicon Valley," said Madara. "That is what Health2047 is all about."
