Here is a summer story that is a counterpoint to the daily gloom and doom in the news. It’s about healthcare innovation, unlocked by some of my favorite trends: democratization of innovation;  low-cost startups; and the “death of geography”. On reflection, I am reminded of just what powerful drivers of better medicine and reduced healthcare costs these trends can be if they are allowed to flourish.

The story starts in mid-July, when I saw these two thought-leader tweets:

• Vinod Khosla: A pneumonia diagnosing stethoscope for the 2.1 million/yr kids dying from pneumonia—more than from HIV+malaria+measles http://bit.ly/NBxJWW
• Eric Topol: StethoCloud–invented by college students http://bit.ly/NptTS5 $20 digital stethoscope–>cloud to dx pneumonia by anyone. [Read more…]