About

Our story

IBD Better was built by an ex-Microsoft product and design leader with Crohn’s disease, in close partnership with a physician who lives with Ulcerative Colitis. They know from personal experience that patients hold the clues that can lead to the right treatment, but a doctor’s visit doesn’t always capture them. We built IBD Better so you can see your patterns and share that information with your care team.

Here’s what it does: log how you’re feeling in a few taps, see the patterns and trends in your own data, and walk into appointments being able to quickly advocate for yourself.

Who’s behind it

Jaclyn Shumate — Jaclyn spent eight years at Microsoft and has spent her career building software in enterprise environments – software that is secure, reliable, and future-forward, including Microsoft Stream, Copilot, and more. After years of managing her own Crohn’s disease with scattered notes and spreadsheets and being frustrated with the system, she set out to build the tool she wished existed, and knew was possible.

Monique Diaz, MD — Monique is a physician and health technology leader who has spent her career where medicine meets the systems that deliver it, most recently as a Regional Chief Medical Information Officer at CommonSpirit Health, one of the largest health systems in the country. She earned her MD from the University of Illinois. She lives with ulcerative colitis — which is why this is personal, not just professional. Monique brings with her a wealth of medical expertise, medical data expertise, and large health-organization understanding.

Between us, we know all the sides of this — the exam room, the technology, and both sides of IBD.

Where we’re headed

This is version one and it’s the start of something bigger. Our aim is to grow IBD Better from a personal health record into a companion that guides your understanding of your own body over time. These insights will close the gap between what happens in your daily life and what your care team needs awareness of for a holistic approach.

We’re building IBD Better in open partnership with IBD patients so that together we create a tool that empowers patients to take control of their health and get the most out of their clinic appointments. To do that, we are dedicated to using the latest technology and research aimed at taking the guesswork out of IBD care and package it up both for your reflection and your doctor’s reference.

Your data

We built IBD Better because we live with IBD ourselves — we know exactly how personal this data is. Your entries are used to run the app and generate your insights. Every provider we work with, and what they receive, is in our Privacy Policy.

Nothing goes to your doctor unless you choose to hand it over — and your written notes and mental-health entries stay out of your doctor report unless you add them.

Questions about any of it? Email hello@ibdbetter.com — a real person answers.

Closing

We’re living with this right alongside you. We are here to make it easier for all of us.