About Us

REverse COnceptual Product Engineering (RECOPE)

Academic investigators look for new avenues to expand their research footprint, often through “collision events” with clinicians or mining the literature for research opportunities. One way to improve the translational potential of academic research is to provide investigators with new sources of “business development” opportunities to explore. In other words, improving the current method of how new research concepts are identified may enhance the translational research capabilities of academic research.

RECOPE seeks to “begin with the end in mind” by harnessing the unique features of UNC’s research community and partnering them with external resources. to identify “holes” in treatment options. By pairing healthcare data research with, for example, input from patients, manufactures, and payers, there are opportunities for enhancing drug, device, and diagnostic research. Thus, RECOPE provides immediate access to translational opportunities for a variety of academic investigators.

The healthcare industry has undergone dramatic changes recently, requiring expert knowledge in identifying existing and emerging market opportunities. The Affordable Care Act, the patent cliff, and a knowledge deficient around complex diseases are just few of the forces that have reshaped the healthcare delivery environment. As a result, there is an emerging trend towards the development of “value-defined“ treatments.

RECOPE incorporates a variety of tools to assist the innovator to develop a value-defined product. Under ACA, Hospitals and physicians will be rewarded or penalized based on the value of care, characterized by re-admittance rates or prescription efficacy. Often, health care organizations and payers are requiring new healthcare products to deliver significant benefits over the standard-of-care treatment options.

Characterized as a “pre-collaborative” approach to market research , RECOPE provides an open innovation, pre-collaborative platform that benefits university researchers, where early-stage translational research can be informed and guided by payers, manufacturers, and regulatory perspectives.