Health care innovation has made remarkable progress in recent years. Praced in fields such as the structural heart, electrophysiology (EP), benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and breast cancer have drawn the attention of investors; resulting in new therapies and improved clinical results. But these successes did not occur by chance – they are the result of a sustained concentration, robust funding and successful outings supported by clinicians and capital.
However, even if these fields continue to move forward, many equally important areas remain underfunded and undervalued. These quieter corners of the life sciences sector have immense potential, but find it difficult to attract the resources and recognition they need.
While headlines tend to highlight the most visible innovations, it is essential to focus attention on less glamorous but critical opportunities that can define the next border. Two sectors, in particular, guarantee urgent attention.
Elder care: design of dignity
In the United States, where multigenerational households are rare, aging is often outsourced to institutions – making innovation in care for the elderly not only important, but essential. Despite a rapid aging population, progress continues to delay. By 2050, the number of Americans over 65 will be more than double and those over 85 will be the fastest segment.
Elderly patients already represent a disproportionate part of hospitalizations, readmissions and health costs. Current conditions – cognitive decline, incontinence, fragility and loss of mobility – remain stigmatized and under -branch. Independence between needs and solutions is vast and investment can play a central role in the gap commission.
However, the design of this population requires reflected and centered innovation. The devices must take into account the decreases linked to age in hearing, vision, dexterity and cognition. As caregivers increases, the demand for technological tools such as falls detection, drug management and remote monitoring are also not content to improve care, but to preserve dignity and independence in the last years of life. Unfortunately, ill -aligned incentives for the health system are based on less attention, and therefore less capital, being deployed in these areas.
Gynecological and menopause health: breaking the taboo
Another long distance area is gynecological health and menopause – a space affecting half of the population, but historically marginalized in research and investment. A major reason: hesitation of investors driven by the perceived lack of exit possibilities. But this concern perpetuates a cycle – limited funding leads to a limited innovation, which in turn leads to fewer success stories to attract future capital.
The figures are austere: the conditions reserved for women represent only 4% of pharmaceutical pipelines. However, experts believe that the satisfaction of women’s health needs could unlock more than $ 1 dollars in world GDP. There is a clear need – and an opportunity – that innovators and investors realign their priorities and to support companies that reinvent the way we take care of women at all stages of life.
A call to action: to end the innovation deviation
We have seen how supported transformative innovation can be supported by targeted investment. But if we want to continue to advance health care significantly, we must extend our goal and invest in the spaces that have been left behind.
A key structural barrier remains: the “dead zone” between the approval of the FDA and the insurance coverage. Even after a system receives a regulatory authorization, patients are often faced with prolonged expectations for the reimbursement routes. During these limbo, adoption stands and companies have trouble marketing their technology. The result? Innovators play safely, choosing to make minor adjustments to existing devices that already have billing codes – rather than taking daring bets on new ideas.
To escape this cycle, we need more robust mechanisms to fill this gap and accelerate market access for new technologies.
In the end, we are faced with a choice: to continue to pay capital in well worn paths, or to help build the breakthroughs of tomorrow. The future of health care requires both. With the right support, we can shape a system that not only treats the disease – but also anticipates it, respects it and reinvents the way we take care of each stage of life.
Photo: Casezy, Getty Images
Auriel August joined the health investment team Ventures in 2021, emphasizing the portfolio of medical devices. Before joining Health, Auriel was a doctor in residence in Ideo design for the health studio where she worked with customers, large and small, to design new medical devices, digital health technologies and patient care experiences. Auriel has formed as a general surgeon at the Stanford University Hospital and also graduated from the Stanford Biodesign Innovation Fellowship. Auriel obtained his MD from the Dartmouth Medical School and BS in biomedical engineering from Duke University.
This message appears through the Medcity influencers program. Anyone can publish their point of view on business and innovation in health care on Medcity News through Medcity influencers. Click here to find out how.
