TapGenes took First Place prize at this year's RootsTech Innovator Showdown, a competition that is now in its second year. As an annual event to showcase innovation in family history apps, this contest has become bigger than ever in finding new talent. The TapGenes win is particularly notable because it takes app technology to a new place that could help millions of people.
TapGenes and its Founder/CEO Heather Holmes are Graduates of the Singapore Founder Institute.
Competing with other finalists like Ancestor Cloud and Twile, TapGenes goes into territory far beyond just finding general ancestral information. This app allows you to find health traits and benefits of your past ancestors so you can see why you've inherited specific illnesses.
It's a major breakthrough in the family history business. As a multi-billion dollar industry, finding new family connections to help current generations is a powerful way to use technology. TapGenes ultimately won $20,000 in cash, and $25,000 in prizes as part of the total $100,000 given out annually at RootsTech.
While the money will help TapGenes become better known, it's worth looking at the background of the company and its founder, Heather Holmes. Her app could become a more prominent tool in helping shape a healthier generation.
TapGenes and its History
The initial idea behind TapGenes springs from when actress Angelina Jolie announced she'd had a double mastectomy due to family history of breast cancer. This created a new debate on genetic screenings and pointing to how analyzing DNA isn't enough to predict illness.
Heather Holmes understood that you need to look directly at your family history to make genetic tests more accurate. Her TapGenes doesn't just skim the surface, though. It digs into family lifestyles and behaviors so you can gain a full picture of why you've acquired certain health traits.
By crowd-sourcing family health information, the app can give more personalized health assessment results. As a result, users can seek proper medical treatments to help guide their future health.
How TapGenes Could Help Families
Holmes herself says that her app can easily customize how they want to share information on family health history. She also gives comfort to those who fear finding out what kind of illnesses reside in their family line:
Our intention over time is to help them understand that it doesn’t have to be scary to share more."
With this frame of mind, Holmes opens up a new electronic path toward finding family information to avoid doing it face-to-face with someone you don't know.
Even better, TapGenes lets you decide on who sees your information so it stays private. After past concerns about DNA data getting into the hands of insurance companies, all the info you receive on the app stays undercover for your protection.
What this does to shape the future of health care is potentially immense. Holmes herself realizes the impact, especially in the act of prevention.
Shaping the Health of Future Generations
Holmes looks at President Obama's ACA and more personal responsibility in health being a major factor in TapGenes's future success. She notes this in a succinct quote:
From a population health perspective, we do a good job in the U.S. of treating people for diseases and conditions. We don't do a good job of getting people to make choices earlier."
By providing basic tools that let people understand their potential health risks, more people will act on preventative methods. Also, it can help link people to better health resources and services. Being privy to details on health risks, patients would get health care access to tests they otherwise wouldn't know they need.
