Phoenix, AZ-based neurosurgeon Dr. Randall Porter personally faced the frustrations that many family members of patients do. His father was sick and Dr. Porter could not be there for all of his medical appointments. He was left to depend on his father’s memory and often had to call the doctor himself to get all of the information. Like many others, he wished there was a recording available of his father’s doctors appointments so he could see for himself what had taken place rather than relying on the memories of others. However, unlike the others, he actually made this wish a reality. He developed a secure, HIPAA compliant way to record doctor appointments so that guessing never had to be an option. I had a chance to talk with Dr. Porter and Lucas Felt, president of The Medical Memory, about challenges they have faced, future applications for their product, and the Phoenix startup scene.
What has been the biggest challenge so far?
Obviously, the purpose of recording appointments is to make the doctor’s job (as well as the patient’s life) easier. The last thing they’d want is to create more work for the doctors. So a major challenge has been the workflow. How to make the sign up, recording, and emailing of the completed recordings flow seamlessly with minimal work for the doctors and other medical staff.
Do you see this being used in other industries?
Aside from using the recording functionality for consultations and clinical trials, Dr. Porter also sees a future for his product in helping doctors with voice to text translations.
What are your thoughts on starting up in Phoenix?
The Medical Memory team is currently at seven and growing. If you didn’t take the time to read (because words are hard), here’s a short video that describes exactly what this company is doing.
