The incoming fall 2019 class of UCI’s School of Medicine was gifted with more than outerwear during its annual white coat ceremony, the inaugural event for new medical students.
Connecticut-based Butterfly Network, a maker of the first ultrasound device that is capable of scanning the entire body with a connected smartphone, presented its product to the 104 new students entering the medical school.
The Butterfly iQ is the result of an iMedEd initiative established 10 years ago with the “goal of creating the next generation of physician’s capable of succeeding and thriving in the digital world,” according to a UCI press release.
Butterfly Network operates offices in Palo Alto and New York. It is a 2019 Apple Design award winner, in addition to winning the 2019 Healthcare Breakthrough Award.
Last year, it raised $250 million from large private investors.
Ultrasound machines typically cost $50,000 to $100,000 and are in such high demand at medical facilities, that often they are not immediately available to incoming trauma patients.
The cost per unit for the Butterfly iQ’s single-probe device is around $2,000.
Doctors of Tomorrow
The White Coat Ceremony was held earlier this month at Irvine Barclay Theatre; the students went on stage to put on their first white coat. Some 650 people attended.
Any medical freebies are likely welcome for the Class of 2023, who can expect to pay more than $60,000 per year, when factoring in tuition, board and other costs, according to school data.
“The White Coat Ceremony is unique in that it marks both the end of a long admissions process and the beginning of their professional career,” said Ellena Peterson, assistant dean of admissions at the School of Medicine.
