Tinnitus is one of the most common clinical syndromes in the U.S., affecting roughly 60 million Americans regularly. In addition to ringing in the ears, the majority of sufferers experience various psychological side effects such as feelings of distress, depression, insomnia, anxiety, and mood swings. There’s still no known cure and existing management options haven’t proven effective.

Andrew knew there had to be a better way to manage his and his patients’ hearing condition. He dedicated hours of outside research and development to invent Intermountain GrooVease — a low-cost, convenient, and effective earpiece for tinnitus management. GrooVease specifically leverages notch filtering, a “groovy” novel method that retrains the nerves and brain. It’s also backed by a growing body of scientific evidence. Several studies have demonstrated that notching music reduces tinnitus symptoms by 21 percent.

The Intermountain Foundry helped Andrew discover the commercial potential of GrooVease.

Andrew submitted GrooVease to the Intermountain Foundry in 2016, hoping to explore the opportunity of turning his homemade innovation into something bigger. Through the 8-week program, Andrew collaborated with a team of Intermountain colleagues and Healthbox to validate the commercial value of his innovation. Key insights were gained by examining the competitive landscape, developing a compelling value proposition against key competitors, assessing potential partnership opportunities, and more.

Andrew submitted GrooVease to the Intermountain Foundry in 2016, hoping to explore the opportunity of turning his homemade innovation into something bigger. Through the 8-week program, Andrew collaborated with a team of Intermountain colleagues and to validate the commercial value of his innovation. Key insights were gained by examining the competitive landscape, developing a compelling value proposition against key competitors, assessing potential partnership opportunities, and more.

After completing the Foundry program, Andrew was granted funding and support from Intermountain to continue exploring the commercial value of GrooVease. In the next year, he’ll work towards the development of a minimal viable product and continue exploring outside partnerships to generate even more “buzz” around his earpiece.

Andrew is looking forward to what’s ahead and says the Foundry sessions “have helped to settle some of the disparities in feasibility and possibility. I’m more motivated to be a so called innovator than ever before!”