Leaps of Faith

Austin, Texas, January 25, 2013; Posted by Tracey Haas, DO, MPH, Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of DocbookMD

When Engineer Carl Ritter von Ghega began work on the devastatingly steep stretch of track in the Austrian Alps in the mid 1850’s, there was not even a train in existence that could handle such steep terrain – but he knew it would come one day. From a technology standpoint, DocbookMD has taken a similar leap. When we came up with the concept of a HIPAA-secure way to share x-rays and images of our patients on mobile devices, apps were not even a possibility on the iPhone – but we knew it would come one day. Each feature must be planned months, even years in advance – often before the technology to support it even exists. This is the reality of being first in innovation – if a company simply reacts to the market, they are likely to be late – very late. This is the fun of the start-up world – being small and smart, we are able to take action before someone else proves the concept. Not unlike the Semmering Railway, our tracks are being laid into the future - fueled by clear vision and a foundation deeply rooted in our core values as physicians. Sure it’s a leap of faith, but the practice of medicine needed a jolt in the way we communicate – and by keeping doctors in control – it might just stick.