1. Team #2
Wearable monitoring system to increase patient compliance
and improve success rate of PTSD therapy
Mark Bly Kent Lee Imad Libbus
Founder Industry Expert Principal Investigator
Mechanical Eng, MBA Biomedical Eng, MBA Biomedical Eng, PhD
12 yrs industry experience 13 yrs industry experience 12 yrs industry experience
Total Customer Interviews: 125 (80 face‐to‐face)
2. Existing PTSD Therapy
• Re‐imagine
traumatic triggers
• PTSD best treated
by de‐sensitization
to triggers
Image Source: The Hurt Locker (2008)
I don’t want
to experience this
again
• No objective way to
track engagement
• Poor compliance,
high drop‐out rate
3. Wearable Monitoring System
Wrist
Monitor
Smart phone or
tablet
Cloud
Smart phone or
tablet
Patient
Therapist
5. Customer Segments – VA/DOD psychologists
appear to be initial customer segment
VA/DOD PTSD
Psychologists (n=10)
VA/DOD Non‐PTSD
Psychologists (n=5)
Community
Psychologists (n=4)
Hypothesis:
• Room for improvement in
PTSD treatment and
therapy compliance
Experiments:
• Does improving
compliance make a clinical
difference?
Results/Next Steps
• Therapy compliance and
dropout limits PTSD
improvement
• Potential first customer
Hypothesis:
• Physiological monitoring
is useful to other
psychologists
Experiments:
• What is the compliance
of other therapies?
• Other non‐PTSD pts?
Results/Next Steps
• New segment ‐ Pain
and anxiety disorders
• Compliance and
dropout are issues
• Need more data
Hypothesis:
• PTSD patients are
treated in a community
setting
Experiments:
• What type of patients
do community
psychologists treat?
Results/Next Steps
• Not focused on PTSD
patients
• Limited funds for new
technology
• Ignore for now
6. “Prolonged exposure needs to be
used more. 50% of patients drop out
because it’s too intense, but those
who finish therapy do better.”
Shannon Kehle‐Forbes
Psychologist, Minneapolis VA Medical Center
“Decreasing dropout and increasing
patient compliance during therapy
are equally important tasks.”
Nishant Patel
Psychologist, DC VA Medical Center
7. Value Proposition Canvas
Cost Savings
Increased
Likelihood of
Recovery
Faster
Recovery
Simplify
Clinical
Practice
Patients
don’t engage
Patients
don’t comply
30% Patient
dropout
Treat PTSD
patients
Alleviate
symptoms
Improve
patient
quality of life
Time/Effort
to attend
sessions
Therapist
Patient
Payer
Therapist
& Patient
Data
Security
10. Critical Path – PTSD Application
• 5 years to collect evidence to support wide
adoption in VA Medical Center
Monitoring System Development
Market
Entry
Updates, Fixes, Trial Support
Clinical Trial – therapy vs. therapy +
Aclaris System
Clinical Study to Evaluate Patient/
Therapist Use and gather data for
Algorithm Development
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
11. “Could your technology be used
for biofeedback? Current
biofeedback devices are hard to
use and expensive.”
Caryn Seebach
Psychologist, DC VA Medical Center
12. Biofeedback: An Existing Market
• Clinical Applications
– Anxiety disorders
– Chronic pain
– Migraines and tension
headaches
• Cumbersome system
• Requires extensive training
• Can be costly ($5,000+)
13. MVP – Biofeedback System
• A stepping stone to the long‐term opportunity
Wrist Monitor –
collects physiological
data such as HR and
skin temperature
Smart phone or
tablet – displays
physiological data
Patient
Therapist
14. Critical Path – Biofeedback Application
MVP Development
Validation of Physiological
Measurements in Clinical
Setting
Time to market
reduced by 3 years
Monitoring System Development
Updates, Fixes, Trial Support
Market
Entry
Market
Entry
Clinical Trial – therapy vs. therapy +
Aclaris System
Market
Entry
Clinical Study to Evaluate Patient/
Therapist Use and gather data for
Algorithm Development
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
15. Validating our Biofeedback VPs
• Easy to use (<5 min to train user)
• Suitable for all patients (monitors multiple
parameters)
• Meets data security requirements
16. Customer Archetypes for MVP
PTSD Exposure
Therapist Early Adopters
PhD in Psychology
Trained in PE Therapy
VA/Military Base/Academic
Tech‐Savvy
Male or Female
Age 30 – 40 years
Biofeedback Practitioners
Masters in Psychology
Certified in Biofeedback
Hospital Clinic or Independent
Clinic
Treat Pain, Anxiety
Male or Female
Age 45 – 55 years
18. Biofeedback is a Stepping Stone to
PTSD Monitoring
MVP Development
Validation of Physiological
Measurements in Clinical
Setting
Monitoring System Development
Updates, Fixes, Trial Support
Market
Entry
Clinical Trial – therapy vs. therapy +
Aclaris System
Clinical Study to Evaluate Patient/
Therapist Use and gather data for
Algorithm Development
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
PTSD Monitor Biofeedback Monitor
Market
Entry
Market
Entry
19. SBIR Phase II Readiness
• Status: Go with a nominal pivot
IRL 5
Path to Revenues, OP Plan, Cust
Data points
High Fidelity MVP
Business Case Defined
Left‐side of the Canvas
Right‐side of the Canvas
Product/Market Fit
Problem/Solution Validation
Low Fidelity MVP, Clinical Paths ID’d
First Pass Canvas
IRL 2
