In this case, similar functionality (drug recommendations) exist within EMR systems. Except the recommendations are issued by other doctors and medical researchers, not some ML algorithm and it works transparently with the pharmacy management modules.
Moral of the story: don't get involved with healthcare startups unless you know the structure and economics of the industry. They are very different from consumer / business tech.
So please, have mercy and cure my ignorance and explain what EMR means.
It's spoken about as a monolith because that's how it's sold -- there are maybe a dozen platforms in wide use (which are then usually customized by a system integrator for a big hospital). They do have every option you could possibly think of.
I'm not criticizing you here (you're not trying to do a medical startup), but anyone who is trying to do a medical startup needs to know a whole lot about EMR systems -- more specifically how they are bought and sold -- if they want to make any traction. All medical software flows through the EMR, and they are closed platforms by design.
https://healthit.ahrq.gov/key-topics/electronic-medical-reco...
The only downside is that sharing this information may open up the hospital to more liability - i.e. a patient takes an opiate instead of an NSAID and then blames the hospital for recommending the opiate to them because of how much more effective the opiate is at treating pain in clinical trials.
But, it would not be my first business model to try, just an alternative to "we built it but now let's just shut it off".
Where should one go/read/listen/watch to learn more about product strategy?
Websites like Indiehacker, stratchery are good. Would also recommend the innovator's dilemma if you're at a big company. There are also a few videos on Youtube by CNBC on products of the past - and I've enjoyed those.
There are a few paths I see still:
a. Assuming you own a database, expose your dataset as an API. Consider possible consumers. Open source it, and monitor the usage. Who’s using that data.
b. Cold message a few folks on Linkedin from pharmaceuticals that your algo says has high clinical success. Can you “recommend” them? Do they see value. Maybe you have a research tool on your hands.
3. If you can keep your website alive, focus on SEO and gain traction with more users and play that out. Write blog posts, use affiliate marketing, and grow users. But don’t add new features. Just maintain what you have. Try that for a year at least. What did you learn?
I think the toughest thing here is knowing when to stop building the product. That’s what stands out to me as your demise.
The doctor was spot on, and those are the kinds of things you want to hear. It just means looks somewhere else. Writing a doc beforehand with potential opportunities is always a good idea, but it’s never too late.
Disclaimer: I do product at MEGACORP and love product strategy.