There is a concern in the industry towards providing safe and comfortable health procedures for women. Female founders have taken it in their hands to make this happen, just like our guest in this episode. Jennifer Fink, Chief Strategy Officer of Lutech Medical, focused on making sure the patient experience for women – whether after a trauma or a gynecological exam – is not fraught with anxiety, concern, and fear. Lutech’s digital colposcope changes the interaction between healthcare providers and patients, reducing the potential stress and discomfort both physically and emotionally. Tune in to this conversation and discover how Lutech is revolutionizing the industry.
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Focusing On The Patient’s Experience With Jennifer Fink
How Lutech Medical Is Changing Internal Exams For Women
Rachel, I’m super excited to speak with Jennifer Fink because she is going to introduce us to what seems like the iPhone camera for your cervix. It is interesting and high-tech.
One of the consistent themes we frequently hear from female founders who have innovated in the space is they are quite concerned. I’m not suggesting other entrepreneurs aren’t but a consistent theme we hear is, “How do you make a healthcare situation which already might be fraught with anxiety, concern, and fear? How do you make it easier and better?” What it sounds like from our conversation, I’m excited for people to hear, is that Lutech Medical is focused on doing that in one aspect of the patient experience.
We are so happy to welcome our guest, Jennifer Fink, who is the Chief Strategy Officer at Lutech Industries, which is described as a woman-owned and operated medical equipment company that innovates women’s health procedures mouthful and has a big goal. Welcome, Jennifer. We are so happy to have you.
Thank you. I’m happy to be here. I have been listening to a bunch of your episodes. I love what you are doing. I love the people you have on the show and what everybody is talking about. It is an exciting time in women’s health and you guys are showcasing that. It is awesome to be here.
We want to give you the chance to tell us a little bit about yourself, your origin story, and how you came to be at Lutech. What was your path? We always find these parts of the conversation enjoyable when people come from the Air Force and decide they want to create condoms. There are random ways people get into women’s health. Tell us a little bit about you and how you came to be Chief Strategy Officer at Lutech.
I wanted to be a high school history teacher. That was my goal. I’m from Long Island. I went to college in Manhattan. While I was in college, I ended up working at a restaurant and managing the restaurant. I abruptly quit, even though I was going to go to school, continue and teach in NYC. That is my goal. I ended up in sales for State Farm Insurance. That progressed me down the line of sales, which I loved the relationship building.
Years ago, I was searching for something new. I hopped upon this interview and met the CEO of Lutech. Her name is Leanna Vachula. I connected with her and I loved what she was doing. She had inherited this company, Lutech, from her father. It was a small family-owned company startup at the time. They had experience in patient monitoring and colposcopes. They were about to receive FDA approval on the first high-definition digital colposcope. That would be the first time that high-definition technology is used in this device.
I like to jump in and tell our audience what a colposcope is because it is not a commonly used word. We all know the term pap smear, which is a screening test for cervical cancer. When a pap smear shows the potential for abnormal cells, we use a special microscope that allows us to look at the cervix under magnification and it’s called a colposcope. Please resume.
This was the first high-definition digital colposcope. It was a large microscope that was huge and stayed in the exam room. In the late ‘80s, a company used video technology to see if they could digitize colposcopy but because the technology wasn’t there, the device didn’t take off and it was moved to the side. As camera technology became more readily available and companies like Sony were creating more high-definition technology, a lot of medical equipment started incorporating this technology. We did this with the colposcope.
What I was brought on to do was to introduce this first-of-its-kind high-definition technology into the coloscopy space and forensic medical exams, which are exams done after a sexual assault to collect documentation and provide medical treatment at that time. That is my story of how I got to be with Lutech. It has been several years and it has been a journey.
Where is the company in terms of commercialization and acceptance in the marketplace?
When I started, it was very challenging because there was already this previous device that had left gynecologists with a negative experience. They didn’t believe that digital colposcopy was ever going to take. In year three, things started picking up a little bit more. We saw a lot of growth before COVID, and then COVID happened. All elective procedures stopped. There was a lull there.
The positive is that it is brought to the forefront of telemedicine, telehealth services, digitization, and what possibilities are out there. That has been something that has moved us forward. It’s understanding the capabilities that come with digitizing technology, like image capture and sharing data on the patient side and so many things. We are at this prime spot where it is being embraced in a way it wasn’t before COVID and it is exciting.
I’m going to jump in about my clinical experience with the colposcope. These are exams I do every day. The thing is I can see the benefit on both the patient’s and practitioner’s side. Colposcopes are not the most ergonomic instruments. We often find ourselves contorted, trying to see, aim the light properly, and get the right magnification. Directing biopsies is even more challenging from an ergonomic standpoint. I’m guessing your equipment is going to mitigate that.
Number two, if things are clearer and easier to perform, this would be a shorter procedure for patients who are mortified when they see this big microscope coming, wheeling it down the hall and into the room. With that said, I have a question for you. COVID lessened the number of procedures we did. We were not even in the office. The new guidelines not new anymore for cervical cancer screening are doing everything in their power to eliminate colposcopic exams. Have you seen an impact on that or not?
Pap smears were always once a year for as long as we can remember. I’ve been dating myself a bit in practice for many years. Pap smears are every 3 to 5 years for women aged 21 to 65, with certain factors to be taken into account. This is a lot less abnormal Paps we potentially would find and therefore, a lot less than would be recommended. Are you noticing that in your company?
There are two schools of thought about it. There is one that feels that colposcopy is an outdated procedure. In the mainstream, it is still beneficial. Think about it outside of the US too. Cervical cancer is the number one mortality-causing cancer in women worldwide, and it has a 90% curie if it is detected within the first 10 to 15 years.
That data tells you something. It says, “Nobody is looking or testing the cervix.” There is a large opportunity there to use a colposcope or visualization as a means to impact those death rates. It is still possible. There is a lot of new technology. There is screening, colposcopy, and a bunch of things but there is room for impact from everything.
There is room for impact from everything. Click To TweetThe US, hopefully, is doing something right. It is the fourth most common cancer in US women. Not that anything wants to be fourth in this particular department but we are in a good place compared to the rest of the world.
In 2022, there was a statistic that death rates from cervical cancer in the US are on the rise again. They were evaluating whether those guidelines needed to be modified again. It went too far in one direction or there is a middle grasp between where we are and where we were.
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Here is the Hot Flash. The American Cancer Society suggests that in 2023, 13,960 cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed, and 4,300 of those people will die from cervical cancer.
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Given the nature of the product, my assumption is you are selling to healthcare practitioners. What has been the response or if you can give us any sense of how broadly practitioners are using this? Are they using it as a full replacement for what they were doing before?
It is a full replacement for an optical colposcope. It has become widely used. We are approaching the number one colposcope purchased here in the US. The advantage is the patient experience. There is something I always think about. You go to the gynecologist. The nurse says, “You can take off all your clothes and put on this rope.” You take your clothes, delicately fold them and make sure you put your underwear and bra underneath your shirt or pants.
It is a sign of trying to have some control in this extremely vulnerable situation, even ridiculous because there is no privacy in this setting. That says a lot about how women feel in that situation and how vulnerable they feel. There is an opportunity in medicine in women’s health from technology to improve the experience that women have in that situation and our colposcope improves that.
Instead of this large microscope placed in between the provider and the patient, where the provider has to lean their face in and punch over it, they are close. This widens that gap. They are able to sit up straight in a different posture that allows them to assess what is going on with the patient and maintain communication. Their face is not as close. It also provides the opportunity to educate the patient.
It is a camera that is connected to a computer. It also can display on an alternate monitor that can face the patient. It can be a good opportunity to educate the patient and provide the patient with an opportunity to learn about their anatomy and see the inside of their body, which has been well received and shown to improve follow-up appointments.
I’m wondering what is up with some of my patients who throw all their clothes all over the floor. I’m going to have to do some teaching about neatness and control factors in my practice. My patients are wonderful but I laugh when I’m stepping over underwear and sock. In any event, the other real benefit I see, since we all rely heavily on electronic medical records, is the ability to upload these images.
Not to date myself but I came from the time when we used to draw a little picture of the cervix and pick out areas to make little notations and pictures. My question for you is, how are biopsies directed when you are not using this microscope? Is it all done in the same way but you are using this camera instead of a microscope?
Yes, everything is the same. You are just in a different position. Instead of using the eyepieces and removing your glasses, you are sitting upright and using the larger computer screen. You can capture those images hands-free. You didn’t date yourself too much with that. A lot of programs are still drawing, which is what makes moving towards digital colposcope even more appealing because it is outdated. The process that has to go with that document you write on has to be scanned in by somebody. That involves a lot of time and effort.
Moving images sometimes not even manually. There are automatic ways to do it where it gets swept right into the EMR, the Electronic Medical Record. That is great because you can reference it later. In that three years, when you are doing follow-up, you can see the progression and what has changed. That is a great tool.
Do you have testimonials from doctors or patients like, “This changed my life?” I’m one of those crazy people who loves going to the dentist. Our people are saying, “I don’t dread getting the annual exam.” Doctors are saying they feel there is a different interaction they are having with their patients.
We have limited access to the patients. It is a shorter, easier exam. It provides an opportunity, teaching tool, and way to connect with the patient and educate them. We receive a lot of feedback on that. There are a bunch of testimonials on our website.
I’m curious, do you feel like your equipment caters to gynecological oncologists? These are the people who are seeing the most complex cases and some of the more difficult and challenging cases because I have not heard about this piece of equipment in the random community doctor’s offices. I wonder if the cost has something to do with that coverage or if it is catering to specialists.
Gynecologic oncology is not so much an area we have dove into yet. We are more in community health, private practice, or larger institution. Johns Hopkins has a surgery suite where they refer patients who have a lower tolerance to pain. They do the procedure under anesthesia instead of in the office setting. They use our colposcope in that facility. It is widespread.
Cost-wise, it is about 1/3 of a cost of an optical colposcope with image capture capability. It is very cost-effective. We have two versions of it. I don’t know why we haven’t crossed paths before. We exhibit with ACOG and ASCP. They are amazing. They do three hands-on training courses a year all across the country to bring on new colposcopist and train. We work with them and provide training in those programs. Maybe we need some more marketing.
Where are you located?
That is because we are in New York. It is slowly growing.
When you talk about the price and its cost-effectiveness relative to the optical colposcope you talked about, for people who have no idea what that means, what range are we talking about? How is it paid for? Is it paid for by the practice and reimbursed with insurance for each procedure? How does that work? Is it adding a benefit to the physician in that way in terms of maybe they can look at more patients in a day and diagnose more quickly? What is the economic upside to the doctor and the treatment benefit to the patient?
Optical colposcopes with a camera attachment generally run about $12,000 to $15,000. We have two models. We have the higher-end version, which is $7,300. That includes the device, stand, and software needed to capture the images. It is everything in a three-year warranty. We have a lower-end model that still uses a high-definition camera and lens but it is a less expensive version. We generally sell that version for $4,300.
We sell that more in the sexual assault space because most of those programs are highly underfunded and they have a difficult time getting money for equipment. It is an important piece of equipment to be used in that setting. We try to keep it as cost-effective as possible for that space. The device uses the same CPT codes for different exams as an optical colposcope. Those exams are paid for by insurance. They are reimbursed the same way as they would be with an optical colposcope.
The sexual assault space needs technological equipment more because most of those programs are highly underfunded. Click To TweetHow does the business break down in terms of emphasis? You said something important, which is thinking about the patient experience. COVID had some positive benefits on women’s health in terms of awareness. The idea that this was founded by a father and inherited by a daughter who is focused on making the patient care experience better is critical. When you talk about using it in the context of trauma, it becomes even more important. Is it the actual level of intrusiveness? Is the experience less something? Is it somehow better and less traumatizing to use your colposcope in the areas of trauma and assault?
We work with a lot of child advocacy and sexual assault nurse examiners who are referred to as SANE nurses. When there are issues relating to child welfare and pornography, a lot of initial trauma involves the use of cameras and cell phones. Introducing a device that a lot of sexual assault nurse examiners refer to as a fancy flashlight, something that is not familiar in shape and design to standard camera equipment, eases the situation. They also use that as an educational point, especially for a certain age group.
Documenting debris, bruising, and all of the things they capture in an internal exam and having it done at a greater distance so that the provider is not in such close proximity to the patient is important. It allows that trauma-informed support during the exam and facilitates that much better than your standard digital camera, high-powered camera equipment or cell phone would.
Having distance from a woman patient during internal exams is important. It allows trauma-informed support. Click To TweetIt is amazing, complex, and simple at the same time. That is one of the things that sounds so cool to me. Alyssa would be much closer to the experience of using one. I have only been on the receiving end but the idea that it is a gentler and nicer exam for what I would call more regular situations where you are going in for either your annual or you went in for a particular problem and as well as the incredibly sensitive and important use case for victims of assault or trauma. It is exciting. We can’t wait to continue to watch your progress and do something to help make women’s health better, easier, and more comfortable.
Thank you so much for joining us.
Thank you for having me.
Our pleasure.