More than a hundred people will be looking for novel ways to address three key health-related issues this weekend in Somerset. It’s called an Appalachian Health ‘Hack-a-thon’.
The Hacking Medicine program developed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology has held 40 such events worldwide. The idea is to convene people with different backgrounds on teams to develop recommendations for fighting substance abuse, obesity, and diabetes.
Former Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Dr. William Hacker says "disruptive" concepts are being sought. “A disruptive approach is someone from the outside of our world comes in and says, 'Hey have you seen what Google is doing with a similar problem' although it relates to technology, not health,” said Hacker.
The former state health official says it amounts to a "blank sheet of paper" where teams can develop suggestions over a 24-hour period. Some $5000 in prize money will be distributed to winning teams. The event is sponsored by the Shaping Our Appalachian Region effort.
