Health Valley: Lessons learned on digital care in times of corona

Commissioned by the province of Overijssel and together with the lectureship ICT innovations in Care of Hogeschool Windesheim, Health Valley conducted a study into the applications of digitisation in care and its acceleration by corona. What have we learned from corona and what can we retain from it after corona? These questions were put to innovation managers in hospitals, care for the elderly, care for the disabled and home care. The lessons learned are compiled on the website: www.innovatiemanagerindezorg.nl.

Not only did healthcare organisations accelerate the introduction of eHealth during the pandemic; the acceptance and adaptation by users also increased because digital solutions proved to be very useful. The project ‘Learning from Corona’ mapped out the lessons learned and how they can be used to make sustainable use of eHealth applications after the pandemic. After all, at some point citizens – patients and clients – will start asking ‘can it be done digitally’?

Lessons learned bundled together
Jolanda van Til, lecturer-researcher at Windesheim: “When the province also seemed interested in the question, we turned it into a project and quickly got to work. We interviewed fourteen innovation managers, did a lot of desk research and finally held two group sessions; meetings with the interviewees to explore the themes and findings in greater depth.” Meanwhile, the most important results of the research, clustered around eight themes, are on the website www.innovatiemanagerindezorg.nl.

Corine Böhmers, innovation manager at Health Valley and also involved in the study: “On this website, innovation managers find all kinds of starting points for implementing and speeding up digital solutions. A wealth of information and an incentive to share knowledge.

There is already a lot; make use of it
And that is perhaps the most important result of the study: sharing knowledge, Corine says: “You don’t have to invent the wheel yourself. There are already many step-by-step plans and programmes. You can find them on the website. Look carefully at what is already there and use it to your advantage. Corona has given video-calling an enormous boost. We will probably see some reversal of this later, but hybrid working is here to stay. Look at your neighbours and see how they organise things, and take over what you can use.

Jolanda adds: “During the research and in the group discussions, we already saw a kind of fellow sufferer contact develop. That is very important. The role of innovation manager can be very lonely. Know that exactly the same developments are being worked on elsewhere and learn from each other. The website now offers a wonderful platform for that.”

4 Reasons to sit down early with a patent attorney

BLOG by EP&C Patent Attorneys

Patent protection is already crucial in this early phase, so we help the young entrepreneurs with that. I’ve been guiding them with patent applications, Freedom To Operate studies and more in recent years. And so we will continue to do that in the coming years. Many entrepreneurs, both starting out and experienced, only realize too late how important it is to sit down with a patent attorney at an early stage. And there are several good reasons for doing so.

REASON 1: WE CAN IDENTIFY THE PATENT RIGHTS OF THIRD PARTIES AT AN EARLY STAGE
Many entrepreneurs are so busy developing their product, starting a business and finding investors that their competitors’ patent rights are a blind spot. You may know who your competitors are, but do you know if they have relevant patent rights? This is a question that investors frequently ask. So you need to investigate that. Whether you do this yourself, or have it done; it must be done. Otherwise you run the risk of developing a product that infringes on someone else’s intellectual property. Which brings me to the next point.

REASON 2: WE CAN STILL EASILY ADJUST THE DESIGN
The earlier you know about third-party patent rights, the easier it often is to make minor adjustments to a design. These adjustments may make it possible to design around the existing patents and still be able to enter the market without infringing them. This can of course also be done at a later stage, but is then often much more expensive. The conversion of an entire production line costs more than adapting a concept.

REASON 3: WE CAN DISCUSS R&D RESULTS AT AN EARLY STAGE
Innovative entrepreneurs often overlook two things in the development process. First, they often do not realize that they are making simple but valuable inventions. In addition, they sometimes disclose new products before they are patented. In that case, that invention no longer meets the novelty requirement and they can no longer patent it. By discussing the R&D results with a patent attorney at an early stage, you can avoid these pitfalls.

By looking at this together, we will discover the inventions that seem obvious to you, and you will not disclose anything that should not already be disclosed. At the bottom line, this makes your patent portfolio a lot stronger. This increases the value of your company and your position in the market.

REASON 4: WE INCREASE THE CHANCE OF INVESTMENT
At Startlife, where finding investors is an important goal, we often hear that entrepreneurs come across better to investors after we have talked about intellectual property. Because of their improved understanding of the opportunities and threats related to their intellectual property, they exude professionalism and a grasp of the situation. Someone is more likely to invest in an organization that knows what it has already done, or wants to do, in the area of patents.

SMALL INVESTMENT
The earlier you start talking to a patent attorney, the more grip you have on the initial steps of your venture. Many people only take this step once their techniques have been further developed. This seems logical, but can end up costing much more time and certainly money. Even a brief conversation with a patent attorney can provide you with so much relevant information for your company that it is well worth the small investment.

Transforming ideas into successful businesses

Britta Driessen went from an intern at Novio Tech Campus (NTC) to the position of business coach at the Radboud University (RU) in Nijmegen. As a business coach and programme manager at RU’s entrepreneurship programme Mercator Launch, Britta focuses on innovation and entrepreneurship. For example, she helps innovative start-ups to turn ideas into viable products, expand their network, finance their business, and acquire all skills needed to create a successful business. She does so in collaboration with regional partners of Briskr.

During her masters in Medical Biology, Britta discovered her passion for innovation. “I was doing research in a lab at UMC Utrecht. I ended up in an interdisciplinary department, with biologists, chemists and mathematicians working together daily to develop new applications to improve quality of life. That is when I discovered what innovation really looks like at a knowledge institution, and what it truly means: creating practical solutions to societal challenges, such as a 3D printing tissue to repair cartilage defects. This piqued my interest.”

In 2016, Britta, who specialised in Management & Innovation, performed an internship at NTC. She talked to many companies about their intended success and the contribution of a campus like NTC to this success. “These organisations contribute to entrepreneurs’ chances of success because they help with practical matters such as facilitating space and connecting you with like-minded people. Ultimately, I ended up doing just that at Radboud University: helping entrepreneurs find their way and create impact. By supporting and stimulating entrepreneurship, we aim to create societal impact with the knowledge generated at our university.”

Building a business concept

There is an incredible amount of talent to be found at the Radboud campus, says Britta: “Many researchers, students and alumni have great, innovative ideas that they would like to act on. We support them in building on their business concept, both substantively and practically. We train and coach entrepreneurs and organise workshops and masterclasses to improve their entrepreneurial skills. Furthermore, we offer workspaces, grant access to a large network and help start-ups towards funding.”

“Simply put, we provide all the tools and methods to benefit entrepreneurs for a lifetime. Even if they eventually choose not to pursue this path, entrepreneurial competencies such as flexibility, market knowledge and presentation skills are always of added value. In that sense, we offer a skills training programme to create impact.”

Cooperation within the region: Briskr and the Radboud University

Supporting entrepreneurs in the early phases of their innovative business is not a solo project. “Of course, we don’t have all the expertise in-house. That is why we collaborate with other organisations in the area and make use of all the knowledge they have to offer”, Britta explains. “Within Briskr, we share and discuss the Health and High Tech start-ups we support. Partners can improve and accelerate the support, by sharing the start-ups and challenges they face, and by providing their knowledge, expertise and network”.

As an example, Britta paints a picture of an entrepreneur who had largely established his business concept. “To be honest, we couldn’t provide him with the support that he needed. So, we reached out to Briskr, and the participant found his place in another programme of one of Briskr partner meetings, more specifically, the Market Readiness Program of OostNL. Now, he receives the most optimal support for his start-up phase.” But that is not the only way Briskr and the Radboud University complement each other. “For example, we offer masterclasses together on topics that are important and relevant to our start-ups. We are stronger when we join forces. And this way, we get to learn from each other, too.”

Helping starting entrepreneurs get the best out of themselves and their idea is what makes Britta happy. “If we support entrepreneurial spirits to reach their full potential, great things will happen.”

Predica Diagnostics enables early cancer detection with mRNA molecules

Starting in 2019, CEO Marco de Boer has been busy establishing Predica Diagnostics. The company is convinced that it’s possible to detect cancer in an early stage, by using a new kind of technology: ciRNAseq, targeted sequencing of mRNA molecules that denote the presence of cancer in tissues. “It’s time to take the next step and validate our technology.” 

Marco has a background in the field of molecular biology and expanded his business acumen with an MBA from the Nyenrode University. “Since my graduation, I’ve worked for all kinds of companies. But I’ve always wanted to start my own company, in my ambition to contribute to improving health. Fortunately, I met William Leenders, the intellectual father of our technology. He was looking for someone who could expand on his technology, and had sufficient experience in business.”

More than basic research

William developed his technique of detecting mRNA molecules at Radboud University. “But if you want to start using a technique to actually help patients, it has to go through a whole process. A university is mainly concerned with basic research, and we’re now in the process of converting that research into something tangible, to help people. Obviously this process comes at a considerable price.”

With the help of financial support from the province of Gelderland (RedMedTech Discovery Fund), Leenders and De Boer were able to start Predica Diagnostics. Marco explains that the next step requires additional investors. “Our 2022 goal is to validate our technology on the basis of an investment in our company.” However, looking for investors is an art in and of itself — but fortunately, Marco doesn’t have to go through the process alone. “I’m from Noord-Holland and didn’t have a network in Gelderland. So that’s where Briskr came in.”

“Briskr introduced us to the Business Angel Network meeting, for example. Here, we were able to pitch our proposition to Angels from the Nijmegen area. This was a valuable experience, as we have increased our network and we are in discussion with potential investors.”

2022 is the year of growth

Through Briskr, Marco also came into contact with OostNL. “OostNL supported us through a “Groeiversneller – Economic Board Voucher”, which allowed us to explore our technology during the Health Innovation Round Table. We’re still in a developmental phase, but we need to know how potential users perceive our product. The Round Table allowed us to present our ideas to gynaecologists and other experts in the field.”

Marco’s plans for Predica Diagnostics are clear: “With the help of an investor, we can speed up and complete technical validation. Then, when that’s successful, it’s time for clinical validation.” Clinical validation is a long process because it involves working with patients who  followed over extended periods. “If all goes well, we’ll have a certified test on the market in three years. But to get to that point, we still have a long way to go. That’s why we’re always looking for new investors or partners.”

From research to product launch: Ardim creates accessible ultrasound

As a postdoc at Radboudumc, Thomas van den Heuvel performs research within the field of medical image analysis. He specialised in the use of hand-held ultrasound scans with the aid of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Recently, he has made the leap from science to actually bringing his solution to the market. And that comes with quite a few challenges.

Thomas has a vision to lighten the load on healthcare. By making medical imaging accessible, he wants to help GPs and paediatricians, primary care givers, to enable imaging-based diagnosis at the point-of-care. “The workload in hospitals is simply too great. We can’t continue as we are currently doing. To avoid unnecessary hospital visits, we have to be able to provide the right care at the right place. Thanks to software that automatically detects risks, a primary care giver needs little extra training to be able to use the ultrasound.”

From developing countries to primary care in the Netherlands: many applications

Ultrasound devices that can be connected to a smartphone have become available in the past six years. Thomas has been researching the use of AI to interpret ultrasound images for years. The software application that he is developing, will help doctors to perform an ultrasound examination with a minimal amount of training.

For example, during his PhD research, he helped midwives in developing countries with no experience in ultrasounds, to perform prenatal ultrasound screening. With just two hours of training and the help of AI, a midwife is able to acquire ultrasound images, which are interpreted by the algorithm to detect pregnancy risk factors.

A year ago, Thomas also started looking into other applications for his technique. Currently, he is working on bringing his first solution to market. “An integrated AI solution on your smartphone for medical image analysis offers a lot of opportunities. We have chosen two propositions to focus on, for now. Putting the research into practice, is what I like best,” says Thomas. On 1 October, 2021 he founded his company Ardim.

From investments to intellectual property

Entrepreneurship entails much more than just a good idea, so Thomas went to Briskr for workshops and networking. “Bringing this product to market goes far beyond research and making it technically sound. You have to deal with investments, certification, drawing up a clear business plan, gathering a team, you name it. Then it’s nice to have something like Briskr to guide you.” Among other things, Thomas attended workshops on intellectual property and valuation. “Patenting software, like AI algorithms, is not that straight forward, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a patent strategy. And determining how to really know what your start-up is worth and how to create value to bring in investments, is essential.”.

Briskr is the community to be for MedTech start-ups

Thomas started his research at the Department of Medical Imaging of the Radboudumc in Nijmegen, from which a couple of spinoffs with AI proposition emerged before. “Having predecessors helps a lot.” He also benefits greatly from Briskr’s community. “Briskr is broader oriented, it’s all about MedTech across the region. Running into likeminded people is so important, you get to pick their brains. I also benefit from the courses and workshops that cover a great variety of topics that you need to know about when you are starting up your business. It is a very nice community that is very valuable for a start-up company. If you are a MedTech start-up in Nijmegen and you have not heard of Briskr, you are doing something wrong”, he laughs.

Look back at the SMB meeting: the role of keeping our healthcare system healthy

This SMB meeting was about the role of keeping our healthcare system healthy, in all aspects.

Remco Hoogendijk of the Sint Maartenskliniek started the first presentation and talked about their MaaS project and the online environment that has been created for patients to follow and plan their own care and treatments. Remco expects that care will become increasingly virtual, including appointments.

Angelique Moonen of VIGO Group focused on the ‘Wicked problems in healthcare’; Long waiting lists, long waits for surgery and the shortage of professionals. At the same time, patients only expect more from professionals. In order to actually implement digital innovations, things need to change! Vigo Group is happy to start a change and has created a new Platform Ecosystem, where people work on their mental health and mental resilience themselves and can get a better match with the professionals.

E-Health specialist Ruben de Neef from Luscii talked about unlocking the power of patients. With Florence Nightingale as an inspiration to approach the condition of a patient from a different point of view. Luscii can be a virtual member in your care team, an extra team member. Luscii notices things in the home of the patient and sees different things than the doctor in the hospital sees. There is already a large library in this tool with 40 pathways to follow, developed by doctors and nurses for the patient. And the possibilities are endless for further digital development in the future.

Gert-Jan de Brok, co-founder of InMotion VR is very fond of games and technology. So their motto is: Let’s play to heal. They use Corpus VR for the rehabilitation of a patient. As many people already use wearables with sensors, they can reach a large audience and it’s very cost & time efficient. Gamification is fun, which is why it works better than traditional methods of physiotherapy.

Finally, we were updated on the Digital Health Hub by Tom van de Belt and Floor van de Watering. Tom started the presentation with a digital health ecosystem analysis of our region. Floor van de Watering adds: Healthcare professionals encounter problems that they do not communicate efficiently to innovative organisations. And on the other hand companies develop innovations that the healthcare sector does not need or see as a problem. And for some problems the solution might already be available in a completely different market (e.g. planning tools for distribution).

The digital health Hub will fill this gap and bring the right parties together, so that relevant innovations can be made and the pressure on healthcare can be relieved with the help of digital innovations. It will be a great, but rewarding challenge for the future to work on this together!

We thank all the speakers for their interesting contributions to this SMB meeting about digital health!

Health Valley and Health Innovation Park join forces

Health Valley in Nijmegen and Health Innovation Park in Zwolle are both network organisations focusing on innovation in healthcare. As of 1 January 2022, the organisations have merged and will work together under the name Health Valley to achieve their shared ambition: to take initiatives, set up projects, bring parties together and accelerate healthcare innovations in the east of the Netherlands.

Director Chris Doomernik: “We had similar objectives and working methods. Actually, it was a very natural process to start talking to each other and then to join forces. That is clearer for governments, commissioning parties and subsidy providers and more powerful and efficient for our own partners in the networks.” The networks and competences of both merger partners are very complementary.

So 1 and 1 really is 3, says chairman Harry van Dorenmalen: “Health Valley has a great reputation and a large network. They are very good at matchmaking and have many contacts. They are known nationally and internationally for organising the annual Health Valley event for everyone involved in innovation, science and business in Life Sciences and Health. Last year’s edition attracted more than 1,200 visitors from business, healthcare and government. The other merger partner, Health Innovation Park, adds to this knowledge and experience by providing hands-on guidance to partners in the development of an innovation.”

Three roles
Now more than ever, Health Valley is the healthcare innovation network of the East Netherlands. With healthcare institutions, knowledge institutes, businesses and governments as partners, the organisation focuses on the health and care of tomorrow. With more than 200 regional, national and international partners, Health Valley is building an ecosystem in which new connections are created every day. Continuously looking for opportunities to share knowledge, product innovation and market introduction. The new club sees three roles for itself:

  • Connect: with an overview of the entire sector and knowledge of all developments, identify opportunities, bring parties together and offer perspective.
  • Challenge: actively take stock of the issues that the healthcare sector is facing. Then set concrete, practical goals and challenge institutions and companies to come up with solutions.
  • Grow: support partners to grow. Use national and international contacts to find sales markets. Show the way in Europe.

Realisation
The organisation is in place. The goals have been formulated. Now it is a matter of fulfilling the promises. Chris Doomernik: “We are eager to get to work and prove our added value to our partners. Together, we want to tackle and solve social issues this year. With the new organisation, we are even better equipped to play a significant role in the East Netherlands.” Harry van Dorenmalen: “All our efforts must lead to concrete and demonstrable progress. That may be hospitals, or patients and professionals in healthcare organisations. It could be in the first, second or third line. But ultimately it is about individual citizens, clients and patients.”

Press release of Health Valley.

Recording How to grow your business internationally

Yesterday we organised the workshop ‘How to grow your business internationally’. Lizanne Jakobs of Brilliant Work taught us a number of key points that you need to consider if you want to expand your business abroad. She listed some common mistakes and stressed the importance of setting goals and having a good preparation & planning.
Besides the fact that you have to speak the language of the country where you want to do business, it is important that your presentation, brochures and website are professional. And don’t forget the culture of the country where you want to do business! It is also important to do market research first (Is there a market for your product, or maybe a different version of your product?) And what help can you get from the government?
This very practical & valuable workshop laid a good foundation for crossing the border. Thank you Lizanne!

Predica Diagnostics and TenWise announce collaboration on development of MicroBioDx

A novel microbiome-host profiling tool for health and disease.

TenWise BV and Predica Diagnostics BV have received financial support from the Dutch RVO (MIT-R&D-samenwerkingsproject) for the joint development of the high-throughput MicroBioDX platform for the characterization of microbiome-host interactions and their role in inflammatory bowel disease and cancer development and treatment.

Compared to existing state-of-the-art sequencing-based technologies, the MicroBioDX platform is more cost-effective, faster and more versatile: it maps host-microbiome interactions by yielding quantitative information on expression levels of hundreds of human genes of interest, while at the same time detecting pathogenic bacteria, fungi and viruses that are part of a diseased gut microbiome.

MicroBioDx uses ciRNAseq, Predica’s disruptive, high throughput targeted RNA sequencing technology in combination with TenWise’s expertise on literature mining, artificial intelligence and algorithm development, to detect biological pathways associated with health and disease. This combination will help researchers and medical doctors to better predict patient prognosis and guide treatment with precision medicines. Also, MicroBioDx will reduce costs of analyses for large datasets and reduce throughput time from a matter of weeks to a matter of days. It will therefore be very relevant for the evaluation of results of large clinical trials and of individual patients for whom a rapid diagnosis is essential.

“TenWise collaborates with Predica as ciRNAseq allows to measure both DNA/RNA from the human host as well as the microbiome from one and the same human sample. This means that human gene expression data and microbiome data are generated faster and interactions between the microbiome and host are determined more accurately. Within this project Predica also provides access to large data sets that we will use to validate our text mining based predictions”, comments Dr. Wynand Alkema, CSO of TenWise.

“Predica welcomes TenWise as a partner with expertise that is highly complementary to that of Predica”, says Dr. William Leenders, CSO of Predica Diagnostics. “As an expert in text mining and machine learning, TenWise will design knowledge maps of biological pathways that link relevant micro-organisms to expression of human genes that are part of the host response in health and disease. These knowledge maps are essential elements of the data interpretation software we will develop for researchers and for medical doctors who will be supported in rapid and accurate treatment of their patients.”

Predica Diagnostics B.V is a spinoff from the Radboudumc, active in the field of diagnostics, prognostics and prediction of treatment response in oncology. Predica Diagnostics aims to bring its ciRNAseq technology to patients in 1 to 2 years with a first focus on developing the CervicaDX test. This test allows non-invasive detection of cervical abnormalities in women who are at risk of developing cervical cancer, with unprecedented specificity. This, and other diagnostic tests for host-microbiome interactions will improve diagnosis, prognosis prediction and produce a list of potentially successful precision medicines, thus aiding in development of personalized treatment plans for cancer patients.

TenWise B.V. offers text mining solutions that help researchers and medical professionals to extract knowledge from literature in a fast and effective way. Also, it collaborates within consortia of industry and academia in life sciences on artificial intelligence solutions that assist in drug discovery with a special focus on interventions in the microbiome. The company is based at Leiden Bio Science Park, the Netherlands and works for clients around the world.

Can you help us with your innovation?

At the start of this year, Achterhoek Gezond took up the challenge of organising, financing and monitoring care differently; with a greater focus on health. To keep healthcare accessible and affordable, also in the future. We have taken the first steps, such as developing a scenario model and an analysis of ‘hot spots’ (where things are ready for improvement in Achterhoek Gezond).

We know that wonderful things are already happening and developing in the field of health. To make it easier for residents to live happy and healthy lives. We are looking for those initiatives. Perhaps such an initiative can become a development site for Healthy Region.

How to respond

All information about Achterhoek Healthy, development spots and what we are looking for can be found here.

Do you think that your initiative, idea, project, programme or collaboration could qualify as a development spot? Let us know about it!

You can do so by filling in the online reaction form. Please do so before 17 January 2022.