A business founded by a University of Leeds alum has won £100,000 of funding to commercialise its wearable health technology.
Asclepius Medtech Ltd has developed a small biosensor patch that is fitted to patients’ chests to gather real-time health data ahead of surgery.
The company was one of three winners in the Mayor’s big ideas challenge, in which local businesses provided innovative solutions to overcome disparities in health outcomes.
The West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) has supported businesses to accelerate innovation by developing solutions, products or services that address community health challenges in the county.
The Mayor’s big ideas challenge supported 19 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Each finalist was awarded £20,000 in development grants to create an innovative solution to implement positive change.
Each team will now receive £100,000 to accelerate the development of their lifechanging technologies – boosting health and wellbeing throughout West Yorkshire, and creating good skilled jobs in our region.
The top three businesses won £100,000 each to commercialise their business ideas with support from Innovate UK.
The challenge has been led by WYCA, funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, and delivered by global challenge expert, Challenge Works.
Nexus, the University of Leeds’ innovation hub, partnered with the challenge to provide access to its non-resident membership programme, where the SMEs have accessed a range of experts, support and facilities.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said: “Our region is home to endless talent, creativity and ambition, and today I’m thrilled to announce the three winners of our Big Ideas Challenge.
“Each team will now receive £100,000 to accelerate the development of their lifechanging technologies – boosting health and wellbeing throughout West Yorkshire, and creating good skilled jobs in our region.
“By investing in innovation and backing the entrepreneurs who are determined to make a difference, we’re building a stronger, brighter West Yorkshire that works for all.”
Gareth Scargill, Director of Nexus, said: “Nexus continues bring together innovation, business and academia in order to support innovators to accelerate impactful ideas and contribute to a healthier, more prosperous region.
“We’re proud of our regional strength within health innovation and by working together we can deliver better services for all.”
Wearable health technology
One of the £100,000 prize winning business that took part in the challenge is Asclepius Medtech Ltd, which has developed the Surgfit system that helps hospitals gather preoperative assessment data, information that reveals how “fit” a patient is for surgery, efficiently and practically.
To do this a small, wearable biosensor patch is fitted to the patient’s chest, who can then wear this at home whilst the sensor gathers real-time health data for up to seven days.
A mobile phone is provided to enable the biosensor to transfer data to the hospital. Installed on the phone is an app which asks patients to fill out a short daily survey to check on they are doing and feeling, and health screening and functional capacity questionnaires, which is combined with the data from the biosensor.
Surgfit is a more convenient and patient friendly methodology of gathering pre operation data that helps reduce consultation time, reduce hospital visits, facilitate better use of NHS resources, and is much more cost-effective than current preoperative assessment practice.
Michael Morgan-Curran, Chief Executive Officer at Asclepius Medtech Ltd, who is also an alum of the University of Leeds said: “We are delighted to have won the Mayor’s big ideas challenge.
“Its initial funding has allowed us to understand the depth of health inequality across West Yorkshire, and this additional funding will help us develop Surgfit to positively contribute to altering this reality.
“Nexus have been fantastic in introducing us to other stakeholders to support product development plans and our pilot evaluations.
“Through Nexus we have been able to find the right researcher partners with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust, in order to develop research that is clinically robust and provides more data to help tackle health disparities.”
Nexus continues bring together innovation, business and academia in order to support innovators to accelerate impactful ideas and contribute to a healthier, more prosperous region.
People from minority ethnic groups are almost 50% more likely not to attend outpatient appointments compared to white British patients.
During the challenge Asclepius Medtech Ltd, was supported by The Ethnic Minority Research Inclusion (EMRI) network, which highlighted cultural and diverse challenges that prevent minority ethnic communities from accessing healthcare at hospitals, during a series of workshops across the West Yorkshire region.
Patients, and their care givers, explained why they sometimes struggle to access and attend their hospital appointments. This included a variety of health inequity factors such as language, cultural issues, and transportation, which can really affect their ability to engage with healthcare.
Many patients suggested that initiation in primary care settings would help them avoid having to attend further hospital appointments. The group felt that GP surgeries and pharmacies were more accessible, reducing travel costs and anxiety.
Asclepius Medtech Ltd plans to add new languages and develop written and video material to provide information to patients about the technology. The aim of this will be to further reduce practical barriers for healthcare engagement around Surgfit.
This will improve how the device is fitted to ensure respect for cultural diversity needs, as well as religious and individual preferences.
Michael added: “Our goals are resolute, to improve surgical outcomes, reduce post-surgical complications and hospital readmissions across West Yorkshire, saving the NHS millions; and to empower all patients, regardless of their background or where they live.”
Sport for all
Another business who took part in the Mayor’s Challenge, getting to the finalist stage, receiving £20,000 was International Mixed Ability Sports (IMAS). The business, is co-founded by Martino Corazza, an alum of the University of Leeds, who received a Master’s degree in disability studies in 2016.
My degree at Leeds really helped with the theoretical background for the work I do now.
IMAS is a social enterprise promoting community sport for participants of all abilities, as well as groups that are disproportionately affected by health inequalities.
The business co-produces and delivers educational training and learning resources for health and social care practitioners alongside coaches, sports clubs and national governing bodies, helping them to become more inclusive.
The coaches have lived experienced of disability and share how sport has helped them.
As part of the Mayor’s big ideas challenge, the organisation has produced online resources and modules to make education more accessible. IMAS gathered insight from health professions in the NHS and from university students to make the content relevant, meaningful and accessible, with peer learning support from WYCA and Nesta.
Martino Corazza, Co-founder and Director of IMAS, said: “My degree at Leeds really helped with the theoretical background for the work I do now. My work is still connected to the University, for instance through IMAS’ partnership work Nifty Sustainability, led by Jen Dyer who worked for many years as an Associate Professor at the School of Earth, Environment and Sustainability.
“Nexus has also been invaluable for us as a social enterprise, providing a safe space where we could organise in-person meetings with participants and stakeholders, which is really important when we work with people’s health, which is a vulnerable topic. Having the flexibility to meet there has been a real help for IMAS.
“The challenge has given us time to specifically focus on how Mixed Ability can contribute to tackling health inequalities. In the future, having a set of transferable resources available, we want to share the model across the UK so that more people who are inactive can benefit from the project.”
Further information
For more information, please contact Rebecca Hurrey at r.hurrey@leeds.ac.uk in the University of Leeds press office.
Picture credit: Challenge Works.