Medsider: Learn from Medtech and Healthtech Founders and CEOs - Can Nurep Solve the Inefficiency Problem in Medical Device Sales?

Episode Date: June 4, 2013

Picture this. You’re a medical device sales rep covering a procedure in one part of your territory. But unexpectedly, you get a call from a physician needing case support on the other side of your geography. What do you do? There’s no way you can cover the case, right? The drive-time won’t allow you to...[read more]Related StoriesSocial Media Best Practices for Marketing Medical DevicesCan Medical Device Companies Increase Sales and Reduce Costs at the Same Time?Substantial and Sustainable – 2 Words That Medtech Companies Should Get Used To 

Welcome to MedSider, where you can learn from a mix of experienced medical device and med tech experts. These proven mentors will show you how to master the med tech space on your own terms without going to school. Now, here's your host, Scott Nelson. Picture this. Your medical device sales rep covering a procedure in one part of your territory, but unexpectedly, you get a call from a physician needing case support on the other side of your geography. What do you do? There's no way you can cover the case, right?

The drive time won't allow you to get to the hospital in time. Perhaps your only option is to provide phone support? Enter New Rep, a unique mobile platform that allows medical device reps to support physicians in a virtual fashion. Think Skype on steroids and then apply that thought to the MedTech space. In this interview with Paul Schultz, co-founder of New Rep, we learned more about their novel platform and how it can foster increased efficiency within the medical device sales channel. Here are some of the points we're going to cover.

The unique way in which Paul and Adam met their first advisor, Dr. Edward Bender. The challenges within the med tech space that Paul and Adam saw when formulating their MVP or minimum viable product. The four key features of the new rep platform. How have medical device companies responded to new rep and what has been the response within the healthcare provider community? And why did Paul leave behind a solid gig at Campbell Alliance? to embark on an entrepreneurial adventure. Of course, there's a lot more we're going to cover in this interview with Paul Schultz, but before we dig in, listen up to these brief messages.

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Hello, hello, everyone. Welcome to another edition of MedSider. This is your host, Scott Nelson. And on the program today, we've got Paul Schultz, who is the co-founder of Nurep, which is a mobile platform for medical device companies that allows on-demand virtual device support to physicians,

in the operating room. So welcome to the call, Paul. Really appreciate you coming on. Thanks, Scott. It's a pleasure to be on. Okay, so let's first start with what is New Rep. What is this platform that I just mentioned? And then I'd like to dive into how the idea for this platform was born.

Sure. So New Rep is a mobile health technology platform, and what it does is bring the live remote medical device rep into the operating room through a physician's own mobile device for guaranteed 24-7 support. It's initially on the iPad, and it allows medical device reps to support more physicians by supporting them remotely, and it offers physicians guaranteed 24-7 medical device support. Got it, got it. So it's, in layman's terms, it's like a go-to-meeting for the operating room, basically.

Yeah, you could consider that. I mean, there's definitely a lot of features that differentiate it from consumer-based products, you know, such as GoToMeeting or Skype. You know, it's a secure and compliant, hip-compliant video service. And we're really changing the customer-engagement model in the medical device industry, which is currently a one-to-one. And we're switching that to a one-for-many by allowing physicians to get in contact with the best rep in the U.S.

based on location, availability, and connectivity. And so we're essentially connecting that position with the best rep, giving them the comfort and convenience of accessing the entire rep force in the U.S. Got it, got it. Okay. So that's a real decent overview, and I definitely want to ask you more questions regarding, you know, what this platform looks like,

but I think the audience will have a good understanding of kind of what we're dealing with here in new rep. Before we get into the specifics of the product, let's go back to where this idea initially came from, where it was born. Sure. Yeah, so, you know, myself and Adam John, the other co-founder, we were both working as management consultants at Campbell Alliance towards the beginning of 2012. And we were working with Genentech, which is Genentech, which is a pharmaceutical company. And we were working with them on a mobile strategy project for one of their, top oncology products of Aston.

And during that engagement, we were helping them to find how to sell to an oncologist with an iPad selling complex oncology products. During this engagement, we felt that a company is innovative as Genentech really wasn't harnessing the power of mobile technology to address some of the challenges they were facing with regards to interacting with physicians. they were really doing more of the same converting print material into digital material. And mobile technology, mobile health technology specifically really wasn't their core competency. They're really focused on building the best groundbreaking drugs, and technology wasn't their focus.

So we really, during this engagement, felt that there was a need for a company to really improve the interactions between health care professionals and the life science representatives they rely on through mobile technology. And that was how the vision for new rap was born. Okay. So we were... Go ahead. Go ahead. Todd was going to say, yeah, we were really focused broadly across the entire life science industry initially. But our physician advisor, Dr. Edward Bender, really honed in on the pain points in the medical device industry,

and we confirmed that through several initial rounds of market research. Got it. You just answered my next question is it started out. in in in in pharma or or kind of the biotech space but but you've now begin to focus on the device space and that was that you just answered my question so um yeah no i mean adam john is uh he's he carried the bag of the sales rep at johnson and and at murk and so he he actually felt the pain as a rep and and uh you know our physician advisor who was extremely fresh with the current support model really proactively came to us and expressed to the pains that he was feeling as well

Got it. Got it. Now, that's interesting. And the physician advisory, you said Dr. Bender, is he a, he's a cardiac surgeon, correct? Correct. He's a 35-year cardiac thoracic surgeon, Chief of Cardiology at St. Francis Medical Center. The interesting thing about him is he actually codes on his own. So he's developed 25 ILS applications specifically for cardiac surgery on his own. So he's kind of known to do surgeries by day and code by night.

Got it. Yeah, that's fascinating. I had no idea. And so how did you, I guess let me ask you first. How did you connect with Dr. Bender then? So he's an innovator. He's an early adopter of technology, and I was looking for the latest thing. We had a landing page, sort of a launch page on our site online when we first started out.

And he reached out to us. She was one of the first people to ever contact us, actually, saying that he was really excited about our vision. And so he actually, he lives south of St. Louis, Missouri, and he went to the Worldwide Developer Conference, the Apple, the big Apple Conference in San Francisco. And that's where we met. So we actually met at this conference, and we had a conversation around our vision and a lot of excitement around the possibilities and opportunities and the medical device space. Oh, wow. that's fascinating. So how did he come to find out about your landing page? That's a good question. I would, I guess through just natural search, I would have to ask him

that I'm not quite sure specifically, but he somehow was able to find this. Yeah, no, that's a fascinating story. I would presume he's pretty dialed in to like the tech space, especially where it intersects with medicine. So cardiac surgeon in St. Louis has probably I got a keen, very, very keen awareness of what happens in the operating on a daily basis. And I want to go back to where you started in your consulting relationship with, is it GENTEC? Is it GENTEC? Is that, am I pronouncing that right? Genentech, yeah, Genentech. Genentech. One of my friends, Joe Hage, who runs the medical devices group on LinkedIn, he made a comment once, I thought was really funny.

It's that the Internet forgot about the medical device space. And you could, in this case, you could say technology forgot about the healthcare space in general, because it seems like so many companies that are so high tech in respect to the life sciences, it's almost like they are clueless when it comes to technology that you and I are both familiar with that allows for more efficiencies in the business model. So that's an interesting point. Yeah, and I think that's why digital health and mobile. health is becoming such a booming industry right now because because of what you just mentioned,

you know, the industry kind of forgetting about the medical device or the healthcare space. And now a lot of problems that haven't been addressed are now being re-looked at with a different eye, with technology being the potential solution for some of those issues. Yeah, yeah. Well, that's interesting. So you connect with Dr. Bender and then you discuss, you know, where to maybe start with a minimum, minimal viable product. Did it, when you initially begin to explore the fit kind of within the device space,

did it, you mentioned Adam, Adam, John, you know, your other co-founder had carried the bag before, but did it surprise you how much reps are involved in procedures on a daily basis? And what kind of goes on inside the operating room or the cath lab or the interventional suite? Yeah, that was a real eye-opener. I mean, even working as a consultant in the industry for five years, wasn't as familiar with the medical device sales space, and it was extremely surprising. And, you know, doing the research and finding out that a rep is physically present

in the operating room for the majority of medical device-related procedures was really interesting. And, you know, every time we have to bring awareness around this as something that's commonplace, not only in the U.S. big globally, and a lot of people are surprised by that. Yeah, yeah, there's no doubt. And I think you're recently quoted in another piece as kind of the dirty, you know, the dirty little secret in health care is that reps are actively involved in these procedures. But, you know, to be candid, I think that would surprise the general public a lot if they knew how involved reps were.

But on the other hand, on the flip side, in a lot of circumstances, reps are absolutely needed because they bring the expertise to that specific case because that's their little world. That's their little niche where maybe a physician, a physician, you know, has to perform a wide variety of surgeries and they don't get to see all of the complex cases and where certain technologies may fit. So this provides, this will provide us a good transition to the actual product, the new rep platform. Because I want to talk to you about what specific challenges and pains that you saw.

that you and Adam saw, you know, in conjunction with, you know, with Dr. Bender and others, specific to the device base and then where where new rep, you know, fits in or where you see it fitting in. Yeah, definitely. Yeah, so, you know, the in person model is great in physicians respect to that. And that could exist onward. That would be the best approach. But unfortunately, there's a lot of changes in the healthcare environment that are making

the in-person model no longer sustainable. specifically the medical device tax, you know, uncertain and declining reimbursement on medical device products and cost pressures from hospitals. All these factors are causing device companies to look for ways to improve efficiency, and in doing so, they're reducing the number of headcount to support physicians out in the field. And so physicians aren't used to the same level of support today as they once were used to, and this is having an impact particularly in rural areas where physicians, reliant on the physical presence of one rep who typically had a broad geography.

And now their peers are getting cut or fired. And that rep is asked to cover an even broader geography. So they're struggling to meet the demands of their customers. And positions are being frustrated as a result because they're either having to delay cases until the rep is physically present in the operating room or even worse, proceeding without the rep, so they're proceeding without the optimal team present, which can lead to compromised patient care and increase the admissions. So a lot of factors that are causing just a general decline in the number of reps available to support, and so that's really impacting

the position's ability to provide quality patient care. Great. And I can certainly, I can certainly test to those things you just mentioned. And they really go hand in hand. I'm sure you'll agree they go hand in with so many headwinds facing the med tech space. And often headwinds equate to less, you know, are costly and equate to less margin. So the natural inclination is for a lot of device companies to reduce costs, which in a lot of cases, in a lot of cases, is reduce the, you know, the sales force or the sales and marketing headcount,

which then equates to bigger geographies and bigger, you know, bigger bags of products. so and that you know I think I think it's a it's it's definitely a huge huge issue and that's where I think personally I think new rep is what you're doing with new rep is is really cool so those are some of the big challenges and so what when you begin to kind of create your your minimum your MVP or your minimal viable product what what did you see as like the the primary things that you wanted to address up front yeah so when we first started we really just kind of laid out all the features that we thought would be useful.

And there was quite a few features initially. We just wanted to get everything out of the bag that we thought would be important for a rep and a physician during a remote case. So when we came up with all those features, we realized that a mobile product really couldn't support all those features. And through Lean startup methodology, we honed in on four key features for our launch platform. And those features are product feeds,

which provide all the medical device content to review prior to a procedure, a call pulse, which connects the position with the best available rep in the U.S. using a proprietary algorithm, and we can talk about that. And then live video, so I hit the compliant mobile live video infrastructure, And then the last one is analytics, so being able to record some of the analytics from the case,

as well as a rating for the position to rate the quality of support provided. Got it. Okay. So, okay, so those four key features. And those are the four key features that are built into the product as we're recording this interview today, correct? Yeah, they're going through some iterations right now. in terms of user interface as well as kind of adjusting them to meet the needs of our initial customers. But those are the key features for the MVP.

Got it. Got it. Okay. Before, because I'd like you to break down those four different features in a little bit more detail. But before we do that, you decided to launch on the iOS system or the Apple network platform, however you want to describe it. Why was that the case? and then will you eventually develop for the Android platform? Yeah, that's a great question.

So we looked at this really carefully before we decided to make a decision to go with Apple. And the latest research from Manhattan Research Group, which came out in March of this year, states that 72% of physicians own a tablet for professional purposes, and that that trend is increasing. and their primary platform is the iPad or the iPad Mini, if not the iPhone as well. So we made a decision based on that to go with iOS, and we also found that, you know,

of the top 25 medical device manufacturers, all of them have their sales and support staff in the field on iPad. So it was a pretty obvious decision to go with that as our launch platform. The challenging decision was to go iOS Names, or to go HTML5, which is kind of cross-platform, that we made the decision to go iOS native because the look and feel and the simplicity is going to benefit the physician.

So it's much more dynamic, much more intuitive and easier to use if you build it natively as opposed to building non-natively. That's an interesting point. Because why don't you briefly explain explain, real briefly, explain the differences between that native and HTML5, because it seems like a lot of applications are moving in the direction of HTML5 for the cross-platform functionality. But, let's expand on it a little bit?

Yeah, I mean, different companies are making different decisions. I think Facebook made a decision to get rid of their HTML5 and go native. and so there's a lot of differing opinions on that. But in short terms, what iOS native is, is you're building it in the code Objective C for iOS specifically, so it's its own language essentially. When you build an HTML5, it's essentially a website that you can wrap, what they say, rap,

you can wrap the application into an Android, app, an iPhone app, or a web app. So you can code it once in HTML5 and wrap it. There's limitations in the user interface and some of the structure. And as a result, some people even build hybrid apps between iOS and HTML5. Okay. Interesting. But needless to say, I think you made the correct choice in developing, or at least

starting out with iOS for sure. I mean, I don't, I can't remember. the last time I actually saw a rep that carried a non-IOS tablet. In fact, I don't know if I've ever seen a rep carry an Android tablet that was provided by the company. And I guess the same thing applies for physicians, too. Only like the geeky tech nerds physicians, maybe would maybe try. I've seen maybe have a, or carry like one of the newer Android tablets. But, yeah, interesting nonetheless.

us. So let's dig into those four key features and why don't you start, we'll just follow the same order. Why don't you start with the product feeds or the content and then move on to the call post, the live video and then the analytics? Yeah, sure. So when the position in their operating room staff are preparing for a procedure, they can pull out their iPad in the operating room in a sterile low cost sleeve and open up a new app platform. And prior to the procedure, they can select the devices that they're preparing to install or implant or use

during that particular case. When they select the devices, product-specific feeds load onto their main dashboard on their device. And these product feeds contain all the content related to that particular device right at their fingertips. So I have used product manuals. manuals, surgical training techniques, animations, really any digital content that the manufacturer wants to provide to the physician is quickly accessible.

And they can review multiple products right there. Now when they need support in the operating room or the CAF lab, they can select an on-demand call button. And when they select this, they can do one of two things. They can select a specific rep with which they have a relationship with, preserving that one-to-one relationship, or they can select the best available rep. And this is really the power of our platform and how we're changing it to a one-to-many relationship. New rep first identifies the location of the position and then connects them with the best rep

in the US based on location, availability, and connectivity using our proprietary algorithm. Once they're connected, the physician instantly obtained live video support in a secure and reliable connection right within the operating room. Once the call is complete and the support has been provided, all the analytics for the case are recorded into a secure database and provided back to the medical device company. The physician can also rate the quality of support provided, and that information is also provided back to the device company. really a high level of review of how the platform works.

Okay, okay. So let's, I think for the most part, each of those features makes a ton of sense. And you probably chose those for a reason, right? Because they're fairly easy to understand. You know, they address a lot of the major challenges. But in terms of the product feeds and the content, that first feature you mentioned, so that all of, that's basically all of the content that the manufacturer, or the medical device company wants to provide the physician specifically for the case support.

So a video animation of the device, IFUs potentially product brochures maybe. I mean, is that, that's basically what? Yes. Yeah, we built it robust enough to allow a number of different file formats. And we're really building this out to be very robust. So we're going through an iteration right now to improve the robustness of the product feed to allow for more content and different tiered levels of content to align with some of our early customer's needs.

But yeah, essentially, the content management system on the back end, it allows the manufacturer to manage that content in real time for their customers. Yeah, okay. And then the call, you said you refer to that button, you know, if I'm a physician or, you know, a tech in the OR, the cath lab or something like that, and I actually want to get in contact with the rep. It's the call pulse button you mentioned. Is that what it's referring to? Yeah, call button, on-demand call button. Got it.

And so I can understand, it's interesting, because I can understand the idea of preserving the one-to-one relationship where you basically directly connect that physician. with the rep that they're typically used to working with. But help me understand how you came up with the concept of finding the best available rep. Yeah, this really comes back to the issue of device manufacturers reducing their headcount in the field. So when that local rep is too far away because they have a broader geography

and they're having travel much more, and they're unavailable. This allows the physician to get in contact with one of their peers because the local rep is no longer available to support them. So it's essentially giving that physician the comfort and convenience of getting the support they need when they need it from the best available representatives, whether it's their local rep or another rep. And so it's essentially a support system

to kind of to kind of teach you back on the local rep and give the physician the support they need. Okay. Two follow-up questions there because I think this is starting to make sense why you built out that feature because in a lot of, correct me if I'm wrong, but in a lot of situations,

particularly with the device maybe that's not often used, that hospital may not know who their existing rep is. Maybe there's been rep turnover or they don't even know who that rep is, So that would be the idea behind it would connect them with the best available, available rep. And that device company on the other side could basically route that call. I'm assuming they could somewhat route that call to whoever's currently covering that territory.

Right. So if the local rep can't take the call, you know, it continues to pulse out kind of in a sonar-like fashion until the call is connected with a rep. And so it's really helping out the system. It's really improving the value of the device manufacturer support to the end user, which is the position. And this is going back to why physicians are frustrated right now because, you know, they're having to schedule cases around the availability of their local rep. And that shouldn't be the case.

They should be able to proceed with procedures when they need to have them scheduled. And that will increase the thoroughput, increase the efficiency of the hospital. system by allowing them to the company convenience of getting support whenever they need it. Got it. Yeah, it makes a ton of sense. And then also two other sort of questions around this, this kind of one of the same question really, but are you, is it, would it be possible to, to potentially connect, you know, if I hit that call pulse button to connect with like an internal, like an inside clinical specialty team in a sense? And then as a follow up, would it be possible to connect with maybe a KOL that is on contract, a thought leader that's a physician thought leader

that's on contract with that device company to almost facilitate the conversation there. Do you follow me? Yeah, no, that's a great question. And we're investigating both of those right now. So the power of our kind of communication algorithm, if you will, is that we can triage the request any way the device manufacturer wants, really. Either it's to a clinical specialist, you know, if it's a pulse to the local rep and then to the clinical specialist in-house after

or if it's just their rep force out in the field, maybe even a call center, if the reps are unavailable, there's a lot of different use cases that we're investigating from that angle. Going to the KOL angle, that's the, something we're really looking into right now, sort of a specialist on call, if you will, feature. And we anticipate having that rolled out sometime early next year. Yeah, I can see that, I could see that there being a tent of value around that, about being able to facilitate, facilitate that sort of conversation or that sort of engagement anyway. Yeah, going back to that

position to physician support, there's a lot of interest in the MedTech space for providing that type of solution in emerging markets. And so we're looking at that as well. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's a great point, something that I didn't even think of before you mentioned it. Yeah, because that typically amounts to a position flying in, you know, to Latin America or something like that and doing some training. But then what happens after that, you know, after the initial training, which oftentimes

is not enough. So, cool. Let's, for sake of time, let's move on to the other two features, the live video and then the analytics. The live video, I think, makes a lot of sense. Other than in an environment like an OR setting, for example, maybe not the CAFLAB setting, but in the OR, there's a lot of fluid that involved.

It's not the cleanest environment for gadgets. What's your solution around that? Yeah, so right now we're kind of building out a prototype to low-cost, sterile plastic sleeve, similar to the x-ray cassettes you would see in an operating room that basically protect the iPad and keep it in the sterile environment while preserving the resolution of the cameras on the iPad.

There's also slips on the plastic sleeve that allow it to connect to an IV arm, so it gets it out of the way. And then when the rep needs to get a better view of the procedure, you know, one of the OR staff or, you know, the OR nurse or the CAFLAB tech can grab the iPad and maneuver it in so the rep can get a better view. This is our early way to get to market. It's kind of a low-cost duty solution.

We don't want to get into the hardware business right away, but we're also looking at prototypes for kind of carbon fiber iPad arms that connect to the bedside and then a couple other potential hardware solutions. Got it. Okay, cool. And then lastly, the analytics. Explain the analytics feature again, because I know you mentioned the ability to provide feedback as well as as well as sort of a built-in rating system as well. So expand on that a little bit.

Yeah, so the analytics are going to be pretty basic at first. We're just collecting basic data initially. So, you know, how long was the case? What was the, what rep or reps and what position were on the call? location, and then as you mentioned, the quality. So device manufacturers can provide a couple metrics that they want to rate their sales and support staff on, such as quality of support, customer service, clinical knowledge, et cetera. And this is an optional rating feature to give the physician ability to kind of get some real-time

feedback on the quality of support. All this information is really just collected in a secure database and provided back and on a quarterly basis to the device manufacturer. And in doing so, we're hoping that this will improve the quality and it allow manufacturers to really hone in on where the training needs are, where the gaps are, and knowledge, et cetera, something that they don't get today. looking in the future, we want to be able to record these cases, actually recording the video and storing those videos, which could hold a variety of different applications.

And so that's something in the future. We want to make sure that we have the legal regulatory and kind of we're in safe harbor, essentially, to do that. So we're still working on that. Got it. That's really, you know, my brain is starting to think about this a little bit more. The wheels are starting to churn, I guess is the better description there. But yeah, there's a ton of value around being able to provide feedback there.

So an in-house training team or even from a management perspective, you can get a better idea of where that particular person who helped out in that case could shore up some of their clinical knowledge and get a better idea of what, needs to be, you know, where the focus needs to be from an education standpoint. That's interesting. Definitely. Yeah, it's definitely not a tracking tool or anything like that. It's very basic analytics that are recorded in real time and provide it back. So it's really meant to try to improve the model and give device manufacturers some data that they've never seen before.

Got it. Cool. I want to ask you this question now before we get to the, you know, you know, you know, your proposed business model and then what the response has been within the industry. But while we're on the topic of product, what other features do you see building in at some point into the future? Yeah, we're currently looking at different features and prioritizing those for future releases. And it really comes down to some of the specific needs for particular applications in different

therapeutic areas. for example, orthopedic and spine related procedures. There are a lot of different devices and utensils on many different trays. Typically, the device rep comes in with the laser pointer to point out particular items. We want to replicate that in a digital form, allowing the rep to essentially annotate video with their finger in real time on the iPad and then send a screenshot of that to the OR staff so that essentially replicates the laser pointer in the operating room. That's one feature we're really excited about.

And then another feature is really just to be able to share content in real time with the OR staff. So either it's the rep showing them a visual of the device and explaining how to implant it to another number of other applications. But that's another really important feature as well. almost like a, you know, taking what we now considered like an in-service, but making that virtual as well. Yeah, yeah, you could essentially use a platform for that.

That's not the major use case, but it could definitely be used for that type of insurfacing. Got it, cool. And that sort of that overlay feature, that would be similar to, you know, what we see in an NFL football game where one of the commentators, you know, basically in essence, draws on the screen is how we kind of see it on the other end of the TV. Right, right, exactly, because the OARCAP doesn't really necessarily need to see the visual of the rep on the other end all the time unless they're physically trying to show them something. So you can essentially see the reps space being replaced with the screenshot that gets

flashed over in real time with those visual indications embedded over the screenshot. Got it. Yep. Okay, cool. So let's, I know we're running short on time here. So let's briefly discuss kind of what your proposed business model is. And then what kind of what the response has been, you know, within kind of the medical device industry, you know, from a company perspective as well as from individual rep perspective. And then we'll, you know, we'll talk about what healthcare providers think about, think about the new rep platform as well.

But let's start with the business model. Yeah, so right now we're currently actively investigating the best credit of market strategy and business model, and we're looking at two different approaches, and one is a price per call, so a price, a fee for every time a call is conducted or a case is conducted over NREP. The other business model is a licensing model, so an annual license for use of our platform, and we're leaning more towards a licensing model. approach initially so that we can get it out in the market, do proof of concept, and really start to hone in on what the ideal pricing structure of business model would look like.

We've received phenomenal response from medical device manufacturers. Since we've publicly launched the demo mobile, we're receiving one to two inquiries a day from interested medical device manufacturers, and they're looking at using Europe for a number of different purposes to address some of their challenges. challenges, that's really where we're at with that. And one of our biggest challenges right now is figuring out how to go to market with healthcare professionals because it is easy for us to, relatively straightforward for us to implement on the medical device industry side.

But we want to make sure that we are very strategic with how we go to market with the healthcare professionals side. So that's the thing that we're working with with our early customers right now. Got it. On that note, because this sort of fits under the the business model as well as what you just mentioned, the going to market within the healthcare provider community. Who do you envision, who's responsible, I guess, for supplying the hospital or the surgery center, wherever the case is going on with the actual hardware, the iPad in this

case. And then who's responsible for sort of doing or who do you envision being responsible for for sort of training the healthcare providers, you know, the techs, the nurse, versus in some cases the physicians? Yeah, so the first question you asked, we really don't have a good answer for you on that time yet. That's something that we're still working through. So, yeah, we don't really have a formal position on how we're going to get mobile devices to the physicians, whether it's going to be on their own mobile devices or dedicated devices

in an account level. second question. Sorry, what was your second question? Who actually, who's responsible for, you know, for kind of training the healthcare community and how to use the app? Yeah, we're anticipating the app to be as intuitive as possible with some overlay training on how to use it, but we've really built this app using Apple's human interface guidelines into consideration to really provide an off-the-shelf instantaneous.

user experience where the physician can download new rep and already know how to use it just through intuitive Apple development. Got it. Got it. And those are, in my opinion, in my opinion, anyway, relatively small hurdles. Because I got it. I mean, like you just mentioned, 70% of the physicians, I think, you know, based on that Manhattan research, have tablets and the overwhelming majority are Apple, you know, tablets.

right, iPads or iPads minis and then and then with, with increased usage, I think it's been my experience that, you know, healthcare providers are becoming more and more used to moving around, moving around the, within, you know, the iOS or the iPad or the iPad mini. Right, yeah, there'll be some training on the on the rep side because we need to make sure that they're operating within hypocomplying bounds, and there's going to be best practices on how to use new rep, where not to use new rep, et cetera. So there will be some training and implementation on the medical device side. Got it, got it, cool.

And then you mentioned that the response within the medical device company side has been overwhelmingly positive. Have you had any actual device reps sort of respond in a negative way thinking that you're entroaching on their, you know, on their, uh, their, uh, their neighborhood, uh, on their, on their, yeah, yeah, no, definitely, we've definitely had those, we've definitely had those, but those have been, uh, not the norm. So, you know, the, the, the majority of reps we've spoken with have seen this as an opportunity, um, you know, to, to drive more business and see more physicians and address some of the challenges they're facing, you know, with respect to, uh, the current model. So, you know,

you know, the reps out in the field that are really trying to drive business are going to see this as an opportunity to increase their compensation and support more of their customers. Sure. And then also, have you had any device companies respond in a way that surprised you, you know, like they weren't interested or they didn't see the peninsula value in something like this? Actually, you haven't seen that specific negative response. We've had a lot of interesting use cases.

that we weren't anticipating, that they're currently assessing in the field with some of their reps to see if there's a viable business model around that. For example, just going to a completely repless model in certain areas where they have no reps just to drive growth. So they don't want to increase their head count, but they want to try and increase the growth of their business. So they're looking at potential ways to kind of use new rep as an extender, if you will, into areas where they don't currently have any customers or support.

Oh, yeah. I would think that would be a huge win if you could utilize a, you can utilize, you know, a platform like NUREP for those sorts of situations. So, yeah, cool. So as I mentioned, we're running, you still have a few minutes. We're running kind of longer than I. Yeah, yeah, I have a call at 11, but yeah. Yeah, okay, cool.

So a couple other questions, sort of in conclusion, real briefly, can you talk about your experience at Blueprint Health? You know, maybe what stood out? Were there any surprises that you experienced during your time at Blueprint? Yeah, Blueprint was phenomenal. It was, you know, the mobile health care accelerator with the largest mentorship community specific in the healthcare industry. and really the best part of that program was being exposed to other like-minded entrepreneurs. We were in a class with 11 other companies and getting to work with them and face some of the same challenges and learn from each other. That was really the best experience is really being embedded in the community and working side by side with other entrepreneurs that are trying to address problems in healthcare.

And any, other than your own company, did you have any favorites that you ever saw? You know, I don't. I mean, all the companies there were... I'm putting you on the spot, Paul, aren't I? All the companies are of high caliber, to be honest. You know, they do a superb job of selecting, you know, companies that have a solid team, you know, addressing a real problem and have the opportunity to really build a, a great solution in a large market.

So they're a great team, you know, half the off to Brad Weinberg and Matt Farageaps for really leading the way there. Yeah, cool. And then you, real quickly, in regards to your background as well as Adams, and you recently brought on another member to your team, Nick, I'm going to mispronounce his last name. How is his last name?

Damiano. Damiano, you said? Yeah. Got it. So you, you, you, you, You mentioned that you and at least Adam knew each other through your background at Campbell. So real quickly, you obviously, you and Adam have, you know, are early in what appear to be successful careers. Why did you pull the trigger on, you know, and go in this direction of, you know, starting your own company and all of the risk that coincides with that, you decided to go down this path.

Yeah, I think it really just had to do with a lot of the trends that we were seeing in the industry that pointed to a need for our solution. And when we did the investigation, nobody out there was really doing this. And it really got us excited that we could create a new marketplace, a marketplace where providers and suppliers are communicating to each other in a remote fashion over secure video. Nobody was doing this. You know, telemedicine was out there,

but nobody was taking it to the next level to improve patient care from the medical device space. And that was really what got us excited and when we visualized the product and the solution really felt that this could, this had legs. And, you know, Nick, we consider him, you know, he's a third co-founder. a dedicated member of our team.

And we met him in a hackers and founders meetup pretty much a couple months after we incorporated. And he was a perfect match for our team. He aligned with our vision and was an expert in medical device engineering. He has a master's and bachelor's degree from Stanford in engineering and was working at a medical device startup developing complex algorithms for a leadless pacemaker. So those experience in that really helped us develop our communication algorithm and some of the proprietary technology that we have today. Cool, cool.

Well, let's end it on that note. Thanks a ton for your willingness to come on and tell us a little bit more about new rep as well as what the experience has been like this far. Yeah, thanks, God. It's been a pleasure of having me on board. It's really a great speaking with you as well. Got it. And I'll have you hold on the line here in a second.

But for those of you listening, thanks for your ear through the entire, you know, what are we on close to 40, 45 minutes. Now I really appreciate your support in listening to this program. And remember, you can find, if you're listening to this online, we do have a podcast. Just go to iTunes or Stitcher Radio or Downcast and just do a search for med-sider or medical device, and you'll find a podcast. You can download it for free. or subscribe for free, I should say. That way all the interviews automatically be delivered to your device of choice

whenever there's a new one posted. Anyway, that's it for now. Until the next edition of MedSider, everyone, take care. Thank you.