Katie’s Notebook: July 6, 2023
Hi Friend,
How was your 4th of July weekend? I spent a lot of time outside and at the pool. It was tons of fun, but I have to say that on July 5th I was happy to wear regular clothes and give the swimsuits and sunscreen a little break :)
Enjoyable Reads: I finished the second book in a British septuagenarian murder mystery series last night, and it was just as fun as the first. We don’t often hear vibrant, funny, and intelligent stories of aging people, which has made these books such a joy to read. I fell in love with each of the main characters and wish I could have a cup of tea with the “Thursday Murder Club.”
AI makes me raise my eyebrows: Some of the applications of AI are silly (see Barbies) but others really spook me. The Company Behind ChatGPT Is Now Facing a Massive Lawsuit for privacy violations, "secretly harvesting massive amounts of personal data from the internet ... essentially every piece of data exchanged on the internet it could take." I was going to play around with ChatGPT when it came out but one look at their very flimsy “sign your life away” privacy policies and decided against using the app. I once heard a quote along the lines of “everyone’s data has been breached, it’s just whether or not you know it,” but surely we can make decisions to reduce access to our personal data and hold companies accountable with policy.
The most expensive baby sock is back: Almost 2 years ago, Owlet, maker of infant wearables, was slapped by the FDA for releasing what the FDA qualified as a medical device on the market as a consumer product. The company just announced their improved consumer product, SmartSock, $299, (which measures infant heart rate, ‘average oxygen levels’ and movement), as well as the medical grade BabySAT, a similar product but advertised as an infant pulse OX available only by prescription. Do you see the hair splitting here? I’m going to research use cases for the BabySAT and I’ll circle back. I am very against products that prey on the anxieties of new parents, and the SmartSock sits in that category for me.
So you want to start a women’s health company: Halle Tecco’s guide is chock-full of all of the resources you need. I adore her pay-it-forward mentality.
Speaking of women’s health…I’m excited about Diosa Ara: Revolutionizing Women's Health Through Science, Equity, and Empowerment. My new friend, Yamicia Connor, MD, PhD, MPH’s company. Their first offering is Blossoming Bellies: A pregnancy journey for Black Women. This 7-part seminar will provide invaluable insights, empowering women with knowledge and tools to navigate their pregnancy journey with confidence. Black and white women are not treated the same in obstetric care and Dr. Connor has big plans to address maternal health disparities at individual and population levels. I’m cheering them on!
That’s it for this week, Are there any women’s health or health tech topics you’d like to know more about?
Until next time,
Katie McMillan
