Product Description
Following the initial product development meetings held by the group, members decided to pursue the design of a technological gadget that would detect health disorders among patients and readily suggest the appropriate treatment or medical intervention required to neutralize the disorder. Despite the fact that healthcare is one of the most important requirements among humans, no technological device has ever been produced to detect health disorders, give the precise diagnosis, and suggest the most appropriate treatment. This is the premise on which the group resolved to design such equipment, and improve health outcomes within the society.
The device will be an ‘intelligent’ machine, capable of processing millions of pages of information per second, and with the capacity to sit in silently listening on patient examinations. The device will also have the capacity to convey doubt where there is ambiguity and ask for clarification if necessary. After winnowing down the huge load of information from the patient, the device will then proceed to deliver a series of possibilities thus making the diagnosis more precise.
The changeover from input (voice or records) to output (a list of diagnoses) will require the development of software capable of learning medical information and making a careful analysis to facilitate real-life medical recommendations. The information fed into the system will be extracted from real cases and mad in a manner such that the system will make sense of the data fed into it.
After developing the prototypes, the next phase will focus on promotions and pricing. Hospitals and medical research institutes will be asked on the amount of money they can pay the product for in order to gauge the assessment of potential clients on the appropriate price. Promotions will also be carried to such institutions to demonstrate how the device works. Development of the first prototype will take a maximum of four weeks. After the first prototype is assessed by the potential clients and the relevant stakeholders, the team will then go back and incorporate the most important recommendations and addressed any safety concerns raised.
Progress
The team had to set the development of the new device on the right footing, and this is the reason why the group first looked for relevant materials on critical thinking, and the elements of coming up an innovation. The rationale for this was to prepare the team psychologically on the task ahead, and make the necessary preparatory steps in line with the recommendations made by experts. A short clip of one of the best teams in California designing a new shopping cart was reviewed to inform the team on some of the workable means of developing a new product. In brief, the team members were able to assimilate the five elements of coming up with new ideas; namely, (1) understanding the subject (2) assessing the potential means of failure (3) generating questions to address issues raised 4) letting the ideas flow and (5) combining all the elements .
The group also evaluated Steve Johnson’s Ted Talk to understand the importance of the right environment. As Johnson (Ted Talk, 2010) advises, the conducive environment results when the team gather, shares, comments and expresses opinions, and this is what the group endeavors to achieve. This is a view supported by one of the top notch designers in California (ABC, 2012). It is on this background that the team started to brainstorm on the workable ideas that could be pursued throughout the course. The team zeroed in on three ideas: looking for the most important discovery to mankind in the 21st century, determining the top five brilliant minds in the contemporary times in the world of business, and suggesting an extraordinary invention which would transform lives in the coming century. It is on this basis that the team settled on technological gadget with the capacity to detect health disorders and make precise suggestions on the necessary treatment. So far, the roadmap for developing such a product has been set, and it is only a matter of time before the real work begins.
References
A Conversation with Edward B. Burger about The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking. (2010,
May 10). Retrieved from bing.com: http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=edward%20burger%20lecture%20thinking&view=detail&mid=6AD786C0B1AFCE9E58C96AD786C0B1AFCE9E58C9&first=0
TED Talks. (2010, September 21). Steven Johnson: Where good ideas come from. Retrieved from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0af00UcTO-c
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M66ZU2PCIcM
