Twin Interview with Dr. Larry Chu (Stanford Medicine X) and Denise Silber (Doctors 2.0 and You)

Our favorite sister-conference curators, Dr. Larry Chu (Stanford Medicine X) and Denise Silber (Doctors 2.0 & You) took some time from their busy schedules to answer identical questions. Read on to find out their latest thinking!

Our favorite sister-conference curators, Dr. Larry Chu (Stanford Medicine X) and Denise Silber (Doctors 2.0 & You) took some time from their busy schedules to answer identical questions. Read on to find out their latest thinking!

1. How did the idea of organizing a conference first come to you?

Larry Chu: The genesis of the idea of organizing Medicine X came from my work organizing an international researcher-centric health technology conference at Stanford in 2011. For that conference, I organized the participation of ePatients and placed them at the front of the conference hall. The power of their voices and my perception that innovation in healthcare might be ignited when we include all stakeholders at the table is what inspired me to create Stanford Medicine X.

Denise Silber: I’d either run or spoken at many meetings about the Internet and Healthcare in different formats and for various audiences. Many of the meetings were  somewhat confrontational, healthcare professionals versus patients. I decided there had to be an “inclusive” conference approach regarding digital health,  that the patient would be the first voice, and that everyone would be integrated on equal footing. Why Paris? The City of Lights is one of the largest, if not the largest, conference destination in the world. It’s practical for the home audience and a dream spot for those outside of France.

2. What do you remember most about your first meeting, Larry and Denise?

Larry Chu: I first met Denise at an international health technology conference in the Netherlands organized by Lucien Engelen in 2010. I remember being intimidated and a little in awe because my friend Francisco Grajales told me, “That’s Denise Silber from Paris. For Healthcare Social Media, you need to meet her.” I of course clicked immediately with Denise and knew from the start that we were kindred spirits. We were both trying to bring the patient voice to healthcare technology on separate continents!

Denise Silber:  At that first meeting in the Netherlands, I too was intimidated. “Oh my gosh. It’s Professor Chu from Stanford Medicine and he’s going to video record me! But in minutes, we were chatting away and I was so excited about the possibilities of linking our networks….Paris and Palo Alto. It sounded great!”

3. What originally made you want to partner with the other conference?

Larry Chu: I truly believe that what Denise is doing in Europe with Doctors 2.0 & You is important work and I’m proud to support her mission of bringing a patient-centered voice to ICT in healthcare. I really believe that we are sister conferences in so many ways, including mission, size, scope and attendee experience.

Denise Silber: Partnerships can’t be started by force…And  they can’t easily be stopped either! If you meet people with the same goals and way of thinking, you will  develop a long-term relationship. We wanted to do something from the outset. We like what the other comes up with,  and we are definitely sharing more and more.

4. What similarities and differences do you see between the two conferences ?

Larry Chu: Our patient-centered scope is what binds us together as kindred spirits. We also have staffs that work so hard to create the best experience for our attendees, and so I appreciate the artisan nature and craft that goes into organizing Doctors 2.0 & You. That said, I think we are unique to our place in the world. Medicine X is very true to our roots at Stanford and the Silicon Valley. Gary Williams, the stadium announcer for the 49′ers is our conference announcer. We also have the California sunshine and palm trees. At Doctors 2.0 & You, I meet an entirely new group of people who share similar passion for heatlhcare innovation, but from a uniquely European and global perspective.

Denise Silber: If I start with the similarities: the events are age twins,  going on their 4th editions. So we are still innovating and enriching our formats. They are both patient-centered and  “inclusive”. Medicine X’s tagline includes that the conference is “for everyone”. We say that we “bring together all of healthcare’s stakeholders.” One slight difference is that Doctors 2.0 & You also highlighted the “2.0 Doctor.” We are looking for talented patients and physicians who are  thinking out of the box  and executing those ideas!  And of course, there is a cultural communication difference. We don’t address our audiences in identical ways. Thank goodness! It’s more interesting for attendees that way!

5. What next?

Larry Chu: Good question. Denise and I always use opportunities when we are together to brainstorm new ideas about how we can advance healthcare ICT innovation. I look forward to possibly announcing some exciting new programs and initiatives from Stanford Medicine X in the next few months. However, right now the only thing I am certain of is that I will be at Doctors 2.0 & You in Paris June 5-6, 2014 and look forward to welcoming our MedX family back to Stanford Medicine X September 26-28, 2014.

Denise Silber: Well said, Larry. Right now, we are 1) looking for new ways to finance patient travel. One of them is to propose licenses to our content. So, if your organization is interested, please let us know. 2)  we are accepting speaker and sponsor requests. 3)  Our Early Bird rate is in full swing,  until the end of 2013! And I’m looking forward to increasing our contacts at Stanford, such as with the course Mobile Health Without Borders — Dr Rivas.

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