MIT Solve

Solution Overview & Team Lead Details

Solution name.

Forbie

Provide a one-line summary of your solution.

Forbie is an app to empower individuals to take control of their own health data, make informed evidence-based decisions and connect with experts.

What specific problem are you trying to solve?

Even patients who see doctors on a regular basis for a chronic condition may have difficulty, once they actually get to the doctor, to recall specific patterns of pain or other symptoms. For example, someone may have a doctor's visit, develop side effects from medication for several weeks, and then have those side effects dissipate by the next doctor's visit. They may forget to mention the side effects to the doctor or think that since the side effects are no longer present, it's not important. However, without addressing the issue (for example, through a change in medication type of dosage) the side effects may be more likely to occur again. Or, the side effects themselves may be a sign of different health problem.

Another problem patients may have is to process all the information doctors give to them during appointments, whether it be suggestions on how to manage side effects, self-care suggestions outside of prescribed medication, words of encouragement, or helpful suggestions (for example, "some patients have found it helpful to avoid dairy to alleviate symptoms").

Elevator pitch

What is your solution?

Track your symptoms and emotions

Monitor your medication

An essential aspect of your recovery, Forbie®'s medication tracker, can help ensure you're taking the right medication, at the right dose, at the right time.

At your side in every appointment

Let Forbie® be your eyes and ears to get more out of every doctors' visit.

Who does your solution serve? In what ways will the solution impact their lives?

Forbie allows you to record how you feel how you feel via audio or written notes, track your daily pain levels and symptoms, and avoid recall bias and communicate accurate symptoms to providers. Patients can access their comprehensive list of medications, add dosage, frequency, food instructions, and refill dates, set reminders to take medication and order refills, and take notes about how medications make them feel.

They can also record and transcribe everything their doctor says, leave themselves important notes and takeaways, hare pain and symptom information from their journal, and create graphical symptom reports to share with your doctor. This will help them to avoid stress and anxiety from information overload.

How are you and your team well-positioned to deliver this solution?

Our entire team has been personally impacted by cancer. Collectively, our team has extensive experience in private equity, healthcare platforms and management, manufacturing and production planning, computational neuroscience, machine learning, and digital design. Our COO works closely with executive teams in creating both processes and tools that enable clear visibility and efficient processes. Her experience is global in nature and she has effectively supported both small and mid-size companies, startups, reorgs and established businesses.

What steps have you taken to understand the needs of the population you want to serve?

One of our team and board members was diagnosed with metastatic cancer and is an active user of our app. Previously in the manufacturing industry, she has worked with our team and with our digital designer, whose father is a cancer survivor, to developed the Forbie interface. Our Chief Solutions Architect has lost two close relatives to cancer and uses his Engineering background for various outreach initiatives to further Forbie's mission.

We have also partnered with two oncologists and a leading researcher at the University of Southern California, who have been piloting the app with their patients and clinical trial participants for the last year.

Finally, we have two organizational partnerships. One is with Foundation 96, a company that fosters an online care community for people transitioning from cancer treatment to everyday life. The other is with Wheelhouse, a cancer management platform for employer-sponsored health plans,.

Which aspects of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?

Improving healthcare access and health outcomes; and reducing and ultimately eliminating health disparities (Health)

What is your solution’s stage of development?

Pilot: An organization deploying a tested product, service, or business model in at least one community

In what city, town, or region is your solution team located?

Brea, CA, USA

Who is the Team Lead for your solution?

Anvi Bhagavatula