Ultrasound - You're my Number One

Hello and welcome to the first edition of 'Making Waves'. I've been toying with this idea for a while and have now bitten the proverbial bullet and put finger to keyboard (doesn't work as well as 'pen to paper' does it?) and committed to not only this edition but continuous efforts to capture the comings and goings in the world of Ultrasound with a focus on the start-ups, scale-ups and innovators in the market.

Why have I done this? Since I started working in medical imaging six years ago I've been drawn towards Ultrasound. Is it because the name sounds like it could have been stolen from one of my childhood TV show favourites like Pokemon or Power Rangers? Partly. Can you expect more 90s/2000s pop culture references in this and future editions? Yes you can.

I think the main reason though is that prior to the AI explosion, the natural place of innovation in the imaging market was Ultrasound. Largely due to the reduced barriers to entry caused by the lower associated costs compared to MRI, CT, etc.

My interest led me to write about the early days of POCUS which you can read here followed by a second edition in 2020 but as things stand the POCUS hardware market isn't awash with new entrants and the uses of Ultrasound are becoming more nuanced and varied. With that in mind here's four things you can expect from this newsletter:

1. Ultrasound focused but not specific to any niche e.g. point of care, echo, prenatal, etc
2. Start-ups and scale-ups. The big boys or as Reza Zahiri, PhD, MBA recently coined them "The Magnificent 7"* (GE, Philips, Siemens, Canon, Mindray, FujiFilm and Samsung) aren't going to be a big part of this newsletter. There's a ton of content out there and chances are you'll read/hear about what these companies are up to before you get to read this once a month. My aim is to shine a light on news/companies you perhaps haven't heard of.
3. Originality, both in terms of style and content. Where news is shared it will be accompanied with input and hopefully a little further insight from yours truly. Merely re-sharing headlines or news and acting as an Ultrasound news-aggregator isn't the purpose here. I want people to feel like they've learned something new about about the industry once they've read this.
4. The aforementioned pop culture references and attempted puns.

"We're ready Cameron, sign me up. We want to learn more about what's going on in Ultrasound at the moment. Stop teasing us!"

Well, for this opening gambit I've gone heavy on Point 3 and 4 and already disregarded Point 2 ?? but normal service will be resumed (and by that I mean actually started) hereafter.

So, what do we think of "The Magnificent 7" name?

Does it correctly capture the essence of those companies? For those unfamiliar with the name it relates to the 1960 film of the same name and depending on your interpretation of that film you could consider those companies as heroes or cowboys or even... mercenaries ??. I for one would align with heroes ?? but you can see how the name may cause some consternation. I have therefore decided to dedicate my first newsletter to campaign for a rebrand to UltraSound Club 7.

Universally loved by me and everyone in my playground, S Club 7 produced more pop hits than you can shake a probe at and association with the S Club brand is far more positive than some of the Magnificent 7 connotations. As with all brands though, it needs to have global appeal. Do S Club 7 have the global Reach to warrant the rebrand? A quick Google tells me their hit TV show Miami 7, has been sold to 100 countries and viewed by 90 million people worldwide, so that's a resounding yes. Reza Zahiri, PhD, MBA I look forward to your response and please accept my apologies for the flurry of messages you're about to receive on this topic.

That being said, I must admit to a pop music motivated branding decision of my own. During the making of this newsletter I felt drawn towards the name "The UltraSound of the Underground" in homage to all things Ultrasound start-ups but mainly the Girls Aloud hit "Sound of the Underground". Alas, I plumped for the witty, albeit safer option of 'Making Waves'. Whereas I was not so brave, I hope that Reza will be...