Category: Insights

Dr. Gregg Meyer,  professor at Harvard Medical School and Chief Clinical Officer of Partner Healthcare, says in the 6th World Medical Innovation Forum (2020 WMIF) that the unsolicited new coronavirus (Covid19) has changed everything. The routine right now is changes happening every day. I summarize some of the insights to this month’s newsletter and hope we learn and grow, especially in the tremendous transformation of the global healthcare landscape. 

A new coronavirus (Covid19) attacks indiscriminately. The synergy of the global healthcare community should be strengthened rather than fragmented. On public health, AI and big data should play a role in enabling real-time interaction between doctors and patients and networking with home care. Meanwhile, the implementation of Care Delivery based on reducing physical Contact between doctors and patients should continue to innovate and transform the existing hospital physical space. The trend towards de-globalization does not affect the global healthcare collaboration system that has emerged. 

1. According to Dr. Karen DeSalvo, chief health officer of google health, people are willing to provide their personal information in secure and encrypted ways to the public health system, thus enabling the public health sector to obtain more sufficient data to establish various monitoring models and algorithms for epidemics. While AI currently works only for known diseases, Bayer’s senior vice president Dr. Mike Devoy says there seems to be a natural consensus among different organizations around the world to open up data, innovate and collaborate to develop new drugs and vaccines.
2. In the new normal of coexistence with the virus, we have to innovate our care delivery routine to reduce physical contact between medical staff and patients. For instance, the waiting area of the hospitals and clinics should be redesigned to perform initial screening for cross-infection prevention. We also consider various technologies to implement bed to bed, ward to ward communications, which ultimately reduce face to face contact.  Tele-medicine, internet hospitals are effective ways to reduce the frequency of outpatient.
3. In the future, digital home care will become an essential part of public health. Families will adopt consumer devices to extract the health and vital signs data automatically. And automatically connect with care delivery institutions to complete the diagnosis, health warning, and risk evaluation, and completing the Internet medical treatment process. Among them, the chronic disease population will be the focus of public health.
4. In the face of growing anti-globalization sentiment, Thermo Fisher Scientific chairman and chief executive Marc Casper said the product could not be delivered without 20,000 employees‘ teamwork in different countries and different functions. Now is the time to strengthen global cooperation, such as in small countries such as Cambodia. They can not localize medical products, some middle-sized countries in Europe, but also need participation from other regions to complete medical services.

The ”Disruptive Dozen” results from interviews of one hundred Mass General Brigham senior Harvard faculty followed by a rigorous selection process to identify the twelve mostly likely to have significant impact on healthcare by the end of 2021.

#1 | Battling COVID-19: Maps, Technology, and AI

Mapping the spread of infectious diseases within communities is more important than ever as the novel coronavirus continues to sweep across the globe. Researchers are harnessing AI, technology, and advanced data analytics to map the spread of COVID-19 and identify those infected with the virus.

#2 | Harnessing Technology to Reduce Health Disparities

Health is determined not just by genes, diet, and exercise, but also by the environments where people live, learn, work, and play. New technologies are emerging to help reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes.

#3 | Digital Management of Chronic Disease

Chronic diseases are a major challenge for patients and health care systems alike. In 2016, the U.S. spent over a trillion dollars caring for patients with heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other chronic conditions. Find out how technology could help improve care for these patients — and lower costs.

#4 | Solving the Problem of Infection in Total Joint Replacements

Total joint replacement is an increasingly common procedure. For most patients, recovery is uneventful and lasts a few months, but some experience a much more complicated and painful journey due to infection in the artificial joint. Find out how researchers are harnessing technology to help address this problem.

#5 | New Tools to Help Aging Eyes and Ears

Like many parts of the body, the eyes and ears can deteriorate with age, making them vulnerable to disease and loss of sensory functions. Find out how new technologies and treatments could help patients and clinicians better protect these organs from age-related decline.

#6 | Gene Therapies Transform Treatment of Rare, Devastating Diseases

The emergence of the first gene therapies for clinical use signaled a watershed moment in the history of medicine. This treatment modality will do ever more in the coming year for patients, especially those with rare genetic conditions.

#7 | New Therapeutic Options for Sickle Cell Disease

Millions of people worldwide suffer from sickle cell disease. While the cause of this debilitating blood disorder has been known for half a century, only two drugs are currently available to treat it. New developments are on the horizon that could help transform the management of a disease that has too often been overlooked.

#8 | Keeping Transplant Organs Fresher for Longer

Over 120,000 people in this country are now waiting for an organ transplant. What if it were possible to increase the time that organs can be safely stored outside the body prior to transplantation? Scientists are working to drive innovation in this area in an effort to expand the pool of donor organs available for those who need them.

#9 | First Disease-Modifying Therapy for Alzheimer’s Disease

The world lacks a meaningful treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive, debilitating neurodegenerative condition that affects millions across the globe. But that could change later this year, when the FDA is expected to weigh in on a novel drug that targets clumps of protein in the brain known as amyloid plaques. If approved, the drug would mark the first disease-modifying therapy for Alzheimer’s disease.

#10 | Making Cells Larger to See Them More Clearly

Visualizing cells at high-resolution is a cornerstone of modern biology and medicine. For more than a century,  as scientists yearned to observe biological structures with greater power and clarity, they built more advanced microscopes. Yet today, even those sophisticated tools have limits. See how researchers are developing a innovative new approach to cell visualization.

#11 | Video Games for Stroke Patients

Each year in the U.S., some 800,000 people suffer from a stroke. For those who survive, recovery often includes intensive physical and cognitive therapy to help regain functions that have been lost or impaired. But this can be a long, difficult journey that tests patients’ fortitude — and their wallets. See how clinicians are looking to help increase patient motivation and compliance as well as increase access to rehabilitation services. In the below video, Ross Zafonte, DO provides perspective on the technology.

#12 | Reducing the Burden of Prior Authorizations

A widely used administrative tool in U.S. health care, which is meant to control costs while ensuring quality, is getting a major overhaul. The tool, known as prior authorization, requires physicians to first obtain approval from insurance companies for certain treatments in order for them to be covered by patients’ insurance plans. See what could save clinicians time as well as some $450 million for the health care industry. In the below video, Marcela del Carmen, MD provides perspective on the technology.

Authors

ANDY YU |Bio| Andy@tmfox.com

Mr. Yu founded TMFOX VENTURE PARTNERS in Shenzhen in 2009. He has been committed to building an innovative investment banking business platform that integrates incubation, acceleration, and investment to enhance the growth of high-tech companies, and has actively participated in it. To the construction of the science and technology service system of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Regional Government. In 2015, TMFOX’s virtual incubation model was promoted nationwide by the Policy Research Office of the State Council as a representative institution. In 2017, he cooperated with the School of Management and Engineering of Central University of Finance and Economics to set up an entrepreneurial innovation experimental class and acted as a technical innovation course tutor. In 2018, the experimental class became a demonstration project of university education reform by the Ministry of Education. In 2018, TMFOX’s professional virtual incubation system was established as the technology incubation industry standard by Guangdong Province. Mr. Yu has been working on North American healthcare research and collaborative implementation of project resources in China since 2015. Currently he focuses on managing Worldiscoveries (North American Medical College Alliance), UW (University of Washington) School of Life Technology, UBC (University of British Columbia) ) Collaborative R & D and technology marketization of medical schools.

We know we all are on the path of the global recession. The questions remain how worse the economy will be and how soon we together could work out. The Chinese market is recovering but still waiting for the lights of hope of Europe and the North American market, which we all are struggling to reach the peak of COVID19, respectively. The meeting of G20 this month discussed many things in a very political way, which are significant, sounds good, but none is practical to save lives. We have to protect ourselves. We have to survive during this historical human and economic crisis, here are my thoughts:        

Check working capital

Today is the end of the first quarter of 2020. You need to review the 2020 budget with your chief financial officer and. Whatever you are burning investors’ money, or it is a mixture of the investment and the revenue, you need to carefully look at your monthly paid out and paid in, 12 months working capital is minim.You need to discuss with investors and bankers on possible continuing investment and loans and actively engage with the current economic stimulus plan. Please also re-examine Inventory “turns,” customer credit policy, administrative expenses carefully.  

Plan for market changes

If you already have operations outside your home, do not lose control during the period; what is happening here does happen there. We should believe that the outbreak of coronavirus and incoming recession change national governance, market, business environment fundamentally. Therefore, we have to stick with the changes mentioned above. For instance, after China released the aggressive healthcare reform plan in February, the US and Canada are planning the same thing as well. 

Stay focus on R&D

Do not cut R&D expenses; stay focus on the core technologies, outsource non-core R&D activities. One possible and welcome change would be a reversal in the decline of government-led investments in critically essential sectors of the economy. The decrease in spending on healthcare and biotech R&D as a percent of GDP put the US at a noticeable disadvantage to the competitors globally. New programs should be funded to increase preparedness for future disease outbreaks.  

Re-examine supply chain

Joe Zidle, Chief Investment Strategist from Blackstone, notes that the US-China trade dispute started to pressure companies might be forced to choose between efficiency and supply chain security. The decision could result in higher-paying manufacturing jobs, but at the expense of lower profit margins or higher prices. We will see what’s going on very shortly. However, the urgency is that make sure the supply chain is still working, changes in component price and transportation costs, whether the cost structure affects price and quality. The alternative should be prepared. 

Eventually, scientists will produce a breakthrough vaccine, and the frozen global economy will thaw out. However, meantime, stay safe, wash hands, wear mask and glove, reduce costs, stick on changes, be well prepared.

Gene Seq -200 – Open to Collaboration in US and Canada Market

TMFOX is happy to partner with GenePlus Technology(Gene+), a Beijing based biotech company, with its 30 million USD fundraising and business development to the US and Canada market. Gene+ was founded by the ex-chief operation officer of BGI, a leading life science and genomics company in the world.

Gene+Seq 200 sequencer  is designed for tumor-related applications, which featured as accurate, fast, and safe detection. Gene+Seq 200 sequencer has over 30 hospitals and lab installations in Asia and is now looking for partnerships in the US and Canada. Please contact me directly if you have any interests.

Practical Approaches to alleging growth strategy with the world-leading innovation driver(Great Bay Area of China)

In early August, China’s State Council and the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China issued a new guideline outlining an ambitious plan for the future of Shenzhen. In this plan, Shenzhen, as a core driver to Greater Bay Area (that would integrate Hong Kong, Macau Dongguan, Foshan, Guangzhou, Huizhou, Jiangmen, Shenzhen, Zhaoqing, Zhongshan, and Zhuhai), which account for approximately 12% of China’s national GDP and a combined population of 70 million people, will become a leading city in the world in terms of economic strength and development quality, specifically focusing on research and development, industrial innovation, emerging industries, public services, and ecological environment. In considering China to US trade tension and Global economic downturn, we present opportunities, challenges and how to strategy for global Hi-tech startups and business access to this oriental innovation engine for healthy growth.

The outline of the new economic system and key industries

#1 Plan: Enhance basic science and application-level research which targets key technologies research such as chip, new material, etc.

Action: Establishing a national science center in Shenzhen and establishing 10 global basic science research academies with over 15 billion funding in the next five years.

#1 Plan: Enhance basic science and application-level research which targets key technologies research such as chip, new material, etc.

Action:

Establishing a national science center in Shenzhen and establishing 10 global basic science research academies with over 15 billion funding in the next five years.

#2 Plan: Innovation sectors include 5G, artificial intelligence, cyberspace technology, and biomedical technology.

Action: 

• Funding research labs, engineer facilities, establishing the Innovation center for the great bay area of China.
• Establishing 20 global Innovation Center within major research areas around the world.
• Establishing a Comprehensive Medical School and research center in Shenzhen.

#3 Plan Developing Ocean Economy which including deep-sea exploration equipment, ocean ecosystem research, and development.

Action:

Establishing National Ocean Bank and China Ocean University in Shenzhen.

#4 Plan Both Nation and city-level policies, funding, industrial chain optimization are priority to support Shenzhen to develop Smart manufacture, digit economy, big data, cloud computing, AI, advanced communication components, digital currency, advanced medical device, health care management system.

Action:

• Establishing Manufacture Innovation Center in Shenzhen.
• Establishing an experimental area of digit economy.
• Establishing a big data center for the great bay area.
• Encouraging and funding Chinese companies to set up oversea R&D facilities. Encouraging and developing international research institutions in building partnerships with locals in Shenzhen.

The changing of local laws and regulations

Action #1. Release policy-making power to Shenzhen, give Shenzhen the most power to decide which is the best to build a national model as an innovation driver.

Action #2. Encouraging foreign startups and businesses to set up their company as a local company with Chinese citizen treatment.

Action#3, Simplify Visa processing procedure to foreigners for business purposes.

Action#4, Allowing foreign medical experts such as doctors, healthcare professionals to practice without to be a Chinese certificate.

Action#5, Allowing city administrative to approach import medical device, also allowing production permit and device permit has not to be in one place.

Action#6, Allowing foreign currency to flow via Qianhai without an additional procedure.

Challenges and risks

The facts of recent economic figures of China have confirmed that the once export-orientated powerhouse is now much more internally focused, creating ample opportunities for companies looking to expand abroad. As the economy continues to grow (expected to expand by 6% this year), we assess some of the main risks and challenges encountered by overseas firms doing business in China. 

#1:Market access

Local distribution networks, buying habits of local consumers and regulatory requirements can make China a very difficult market to access. What’s more, the market environment is completely detached from most other economies in the world, making it difficult to take the first steps.

Tips:

• Direct selling to China is no longer a workable approach to most Hi-tech startups and business unless you are only choice (China-US trade tension also should be considered), therefore, doing business or starting a business in Shenzhen may be a realistic approach. As one of the successful economic and innovation raw model, Shenzhen has built-in the past 40 years. Once you position yourself as Shenzhen business, it is much easier to sell to the rest of China.
• Doing market research is another necessary step you have to take, a big number in market size is easy to understand, but the big number always confuse you into some rules as mentioned above.  

#2 Consumer preference

There has been a sizeable class shift in China over the past few decades, and the consumer environment is far more diverse than it once was. It is also completely detached from markets elsewhere in the world, and many companies have sunk in China because they failed to take into account consumer preference. 

Tips:

• Copying to China has been dead mode for decades. Consumer preference study is mandatory. Listening to what target consumer say is more important than you follow the pattern big companies does.
• The economic way to do consumer study is to visit area of Qianhai street. Not only over 50 Hi-tech IPO companies such Tecent locate there, but also many maker spaces, incubators, accelerators, venture capital funds, University labs locate there. Looking at what they do and listening to what they think about market and consumer is valuable.

#3 Bureaucracy and Administration

Overseas firms often struggle with laws and regulations in China, bureaucracy as their number one concern when expanding into the country. Most common complaints revolve around obtaining the required licenses and permits, the laborious processes is boring, sometimes even nowhere to go. Administration, licensing, product approvals and much more laborious operating tasks can leave managerial desks flooded in paperwork. For many firms, overcoming the bureaucratic hassle is the biggest task of successfully breaking the Chinese market. 

Tips:

• Honest to say, Shenzhen is much better than other places in China. Even Shenzhen have the same difficulty when they expand out of Shenzhen. ”Small government, big society” is one of the key principles Shenzhen rules itself. As we can see over 200 administrative procedures have been suspended in the last 5 years.
• Hiring local service experts to deal with the government, do not do it by yourself.
• Treating both yourself and your company as a local, not a foreigner (LaoWai), make sure your business is inline of government support scope, establish local entity with Hi-tech certificate, software certificate, and many other things, they are not paperwork, they help you to get government funding, applying tax return, enable governmental and industrial allowance which ultimately reduce operation costs, R&D costs.
• Both central government and local governments have certain programs to support Hi-tech R&D, outsource annually, build a Pro-forma financial statement to outline each component, they are not just free space, land use, etc.

#4 Intellectual property

Intellectual property rights are an area that has been notoriously difficult in China, although recent reports suggest this is an area that is improving the most. Every foreign company calling for stronger IP protection, more Chinese companies are calling for the same.

Tips:

• The most important thing is you have to admit this is a changing fact, we wish it will be better. However, we have to take the risk. Intellectual property is not a key factor in our decision making process of doing business or not doing business in China.
• Plan you IP framework before you go there, Ask investment banks, lawyers, and related expert to draw a clear picture of your innovation roadmap, Do an IP research on who is doing and what is not doing. Establish a routine check and review mechanism on assumed competitors. Most Chinese companies are not likely to release their inventions in the first place because of the worry of copying.

#5 Competition

Many Chinese companies are looking to improve the quality of their products and services so they can sell them abroad, which has increased competition as a result. Additionally, consumers can, in some cases, give preference to native companies over those from abroad. The government can also give preference to domestic firms, which makes disrupting the market rather difficult. 

Tips:

• Secretly but not seriously secret, the government gives preference to domestic firms, especially government contracts with health care, aerospace, railway, water, gas, telecom, etc. In the past, foreign firms enter these kinds of business via Chinese middle man (Firm). However, with anti-corruption campaign have gone further, we would think there should be some transparency.
• Start your business as a local brand, this is a kind of business immigration as we have seen very much possibility happened very shortly.
• Look at the capital structure of your firm both in the motherland and in China. Build a father-son and son-father relationship, and ensure outside in and inside out cash flows as needed.