Balance speed and safety in HealthTech – Brigitte West (Director of Product Strategy, DrDoctor)
In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily Smith and Randy Silver speak with Brigitte West, Director of Product at DrDoctor. Brigitte shares how Dr. Doctor navigates the complexity of NHS healthcare, builds clinically safe and evidence-driven products, and applies AI to solve real operational challenges.
Featured Links: Follow Brigitte on LinkedIn | DrDoctor | European Commission Public Health 'Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare' feature
Chapters
00:00 – Introduction & the NHS challenge
00:02 – Brigitte's background & the appeal of health‑tech
00:04 – Complexity & go‑to‑market lessons [
00:06 – MVP in regulated products
00:09 – Testing in clinical environments
00:14 – Resourcing for integration & squad complexity
00:16 – Coaching newcomers & diverse hiring
00:20 – Clinicians embedded in product squads
00:22 – Engaging with patients and user testing
00:25 – Managing patient confusion & brand clarity
00:28 – Regulation, evidence and ethical design
00:31 – Navigating the NHS as a fragmented system
00:35 – AI in healthcare: current impact & future bets
00:39 – Wrap‑up and final reflections
Key takeaways
- Health‑tech demands multi‑disciplinary sophistication: PMs must decode NHS funding, politics, procurement systems and stakeholder layers—or partner with someone who does.
- Clinically‑safe MVPs are “viable” not minimal: Even prototypes must satisfy regulation, patient safety and clinical efficacy.
- Research with nuance: Controlled usability testing misses real‑world friction—so Dr Doctor uses time‑motion analysis, screen‑recordings and embedded observation.
- Hire breadth & depth: Bring non‑health‑tech PMs to challenge assumptions, but embed clinicians and clinical experts throughout the team.
- Evidence takes precedence: Rigorous, outcome‑based validation is a non‑negotiable pillar—not just a compliance checkbox.
- Targeted AI use holds real promise: Using AI to predict “Did Not Attend” appointments is delivering measurable operational impact now.
- Thinking long‑term: Today’s product bets lay the groundwork for clinical‑grade AI and medical‑device classification tomorrow.
About the author
The Product Experience
Join our podcast hosts Lily Smith and Randy Silver for in-depth conversations with some of the best product people around the world! Every week they chat with people in the know, covering the topics that matter to you - solving real problems, developing awesome products, building successful teams and developing careers. Find out more, subscribe, and access all episodes on The Product Experience homepage.
