Bald Truth Interview: How The ARTAS Robot Brings Clinic Transparency to FUE

Dr. Bernstein: One of the problems with the robot, as you know, is a relatively large barrier to entry. It is expensive. Spencer Kobren: Right. Dr. Bernstein: And you need an operating room dedicated just to the robot. Spencer Kobren: Sure. Dr. Bernstein: So doctors who do the procedure part time or who are just entering the field, really it’s a big investment for them. And so it actually screens out doctors who really don’t have a lot of experience. Spencer Kobren: Well, you would think that was the case and it does, but it is also, for whatever reason, there are doctors who have a lot of experience, who have really great names in the field, who have decided to cross over into the FUE arena, but they are going with the tech model. And I am talking about some really well known doctors who have great strip results out there and, you know, they are going for, in my view, the whole slave labor approach. Dr. Bernstein: Right. Spencer Kobren: And it is unfortunate. So it’s not just the novices, it’s not just the guys that are doing it part time, it's the guys who have been doing it full time for 15 years, who are like you know what, maybe I should have learned how to do FUE before, now I gotta catch up, I am going to hire these techs, it's cheaper than buying the robot, and I don’t have to pay the company. Dr. Bernstein: Actually I always like paying the company because I think that you are in bed with the company, and they want the robot to be functioning, makes the service great – Spencer Kobren: Of course – Dr. Bernstein: You are supported, I think I mentioned this before on your show that when I did general dermatology many, many years ago, when we bought lasers, you buy a laser, and then it went down, it was weeks before you could get it fixed. Spencer Kobren: Oh yeah. Dr. Bernstein: With Restoration Robotics they can see what you are doing in real-time, and so if there is any problems, sometimes they can identify the problem before we can. Spencer Kobren: Sure. Dr. Bernstein: What happened – Hey! What's up with the procedure, why was the case small? What happened, did you run into obstacles? If you are having any kind of difficulty they can look on the computer. The other thing is that everything is recorded, so you can’t make any of these claims, I got 99% transection rate, 99% yield and 1% transection, I mean it’s there. Spencer Kobren: I am glad really glad you brought that up, because I spoke to [Gabe Zingaretti of Restoration Robotics] about that and we put up a video the other day and the truth is, what we see, we see these guys who are pandering to the online communities who are putting out numbers and just saying, we have been doing this for this many years, it’s completely doctor driven and we get like a 2% transection rate. How the F do they know? They have no clue. They are just throwing out numbers. With the ARTAS you guys have real data. And that is, not only is it verifiable, but that is compelling. And should be compelling to consumers. Dr. Bernstein: And it’s a way for us to continue to improve because we have real information. Spencer Kobren: Right. Dr. Bernstein: The patient knows what’s going on, what they’re getting, which is really important, transparency is really, really important.

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