I-Corps: Commercialization Investigation of the Genomic Prescribing System

University Of Chicago, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

The Genomic Prescribing System (GPS) is a tool for seamlessly evaluating, at the time prescriptions are written, the genetically determined consequences of medication decisions. In many cases, individuals' genes determine whether they will respond positively or negatively to particular medicines. For some people, genetically influenced responses can cause particular medicines to be ineffective. In one estimate, this effect causes the full or partial failure of up to 50% of administered drugs. In other cases, genetically influenced responses cause a toxic, or even a fatal, reaction to particular drugs. Properly prescribed and taken medications generate adverse drug events that are estimated to be the 5th largest cause of death in the United States. GPS enables medical providers to differentiate between otherwise similar prescription choices based on patient genetics. The goal of implementing the tool is to decrease the number of both ineffective drug treatments and adverse drug events, and thereby contribute to improving healthcare while reducing its cost. GPS has three main components. One component is a cost-effective test panel for the one-time measurement of each patient's relevant genes. A second component is a carefully curated set of databases capturing the necessary relationships between drugs, genes, and diseases. The third component is a software interface that brings all this information together in the clinic for the prescribing physician. Improperly integrating software into health professionals' workflows is a common failure mode. Likewise, the format, order, and quantity of content frequently determine the success of software tools. Finally, business model choices for products in the health care industry can be crucial to new methods' success. The goal of this particular project is to enable the implementation of GPS by measuring the how these three components (workflow, software content and structure, business model) can be configured to maximize the probability that GPS will broadly deliver its intended benefits. The proposed project will focus evaluating how concierge medicine providers might use and pay for GPS. As part of this process it will be important to elucidate a more complete value proposition of what GPS would provide this group and to identify the product features that would most effectively deliver that value. The primary project activity will be identifying and interviewing physicians in concierge medicine practices. The technology demonstration the team will provide at the end of the project will be a software demonstration incorporating the features delivering value proposition benefits verified or discovered in the course of the project.