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Whence Health Care's "Growth Platform?"

Does the notion of an Apple-like growth platform - an ecosystem, really - transfer to health care?  It's a theme I'll be developing over the next few weeks.

Here's the New York Times on Apple's growth platform;
"The software and services that work on Apple’s hit products are accelerating its extraordinary expansion. Apple provides the underlying technology and marketplace: iTunes software and the iTunes Store for managing, downloading and buying music and media; iPhone and iPad software for creating applications; and the App Store for sampling and buying them.

"The more people buy iPhones and iPads, the more software developers and media companies want to write applications for them, as various as games and digital magazines. And consumers are more likely to buy iPhones and iPads when more entertainment and information applications are available on them. The combination of hardware, software and services is what corporate executives, economists and analysts call a platform. Successful technology platforms sustain and reinforce growth. And this self-reinforcing cycle is known as a network effect. It helps the platform owner and raises a barrier to competitors."
What is health care's "platform?"  Where do self-reinforcing "network effects" kick in?  Stay tuned.

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