After 8 months of conversations and interviews with representatives of Health Tech companies in Poland, and during a break before the second edition of the series, I share my insights on the communication challenges Polish startups face.

In November 2023, I started the Health Tech of the Week series, aimed at discovering and presenting to a broader audience the most innovative Polish solutions in health technology. This topic was not chosen by chance—we are currently experiencing a real „boom” in new technologies, with reports of breakthrough applications of artificial intelligence appearing daily. While technology can improve daily life, entertainment quality, and save time through optimizations, health remains paramount. Statistics cited by my interviewees often underscored this importance. 

Michał Matuszewski from Ailis, involved in rapid breast cancer diagnosis technology, reminded us that this cancer accounts for about 37% of all cases among women, and data from the National Cancer Registry in 2020 is alarming—it is diagnosed 67 times daily. Other interviewees focused on issues such as insufficient psychological care for children (Calmsie), employee mental health support (HearMe), assistance for children with speech defects (Linghos), sleep apnea (Clebre), or providing basic ophthalmic care where possible (Feyenally). Their business models stemmed from a passion and desire to change the world. 

Working over the past months with numerous startups and talking to experts such as Olivia Blanchard from Health Venture Lab, Jakub Chwiećko from the Medical Innovation Institute, and Kazimierz Cięciak from Comarch Healthcare, I gained a better understanding of the communication challenges faced by startups in Poland. Conversations with investors who work daily with innovative projects in the medical field also made me realize how much still needs to be done in this industry. Here are some of my conclusions.

Is It Too Early? Is It Too Late?

Communicating health-related issues carries a huge responsibility. Startups, as well as those describing their achievements, must remember that every word and promise in the text can give hope. Communication in Health Tech is not just about attracting interest in a product but having a real impact on people’s lives. This is a challenge for companies often still in the testing or clinical trial phase—when is the right time to say we are operational?

Many companies I talked to are waiting for the next edition of the Health Tech of the Week series because they are at too early a development stage. The decision to wait before revealing key information is understandable, especially when it can give a competitive advantage. However, delaying communication can be detrimental. The sooner startups learn the intricacies of media communication, the better prepared they will be for the big wave of interest that will happen sooner or later. When the project goes live, secures an investor, or enters into key partnerships, communication will be unavoidable and necessary for further development.

To properly gauge the moment to start communication, external specialist support can be helpful. An outsider can help indicate when it is worth waiting and which news should be published as soon as possible.

Good Specialists Need Specialists

I was greatly impressed by the knowledge of startup representatives—often from very narrow fields, acquired over many years. Most people creating or managing health startups are practitioners—specialist doctors who saw gaps in conventional healthcare and started their projects. Observing and meeting people who turn knowledge and years of practice into solutions that can have a real impact on others’ health is one of the most wonderful experiences associated with the Health Tech of the Week project. In this industry, it is very evident that behind every success stand competence, competence, and once again, competence. Especially in today’s world, where knowledge and competence are often less important than social media presence and views.

It is worth remembering this when communicating startup activities—the substance and expertise of their founders are their export goods. To translate often very specialized and niche medical language into terms that reach potential clients or investors, cooperation with experienced PR or marketing specialists is essential.

Seizing Opportunities

At the initial stage of business, it is especially important to seize every opportunity that opens up before us. This openness to new projects, collaborations, or contacts is often decisive at later stages of startup operation. Listening to my interviewees, I often had the impression that their actions were prompted by an impulse triggered by one email, a chance meeting, or a private situation that pushed them to act. Sometimes a great project or fruitful cooperation can arise from one such opportunity.

Here, I would like to especially thank the participants of this year’s edition of Health Tech of the Week, who found time not only to talk about their business but also to present solutions that I hope will become well-known: Talkie.ai; SDS Optic S.A.; Feyenally; Calmsie; Linghos; GeneMe Labs; upmedic; HearMe; eOS; Biocam; Ailis; System eCRF finECRF; Locon; CliniNote; Clebre; VR TierOne.

Thank you to all who supported and followed this project, and I invite more startups and companies to collaborate in the autumn edition of Health Tech of The Week.

In today’s post from the „Health Tech of the Week” series, I present the third edition of the „Mother and Child Startup Challenge” competition, organized by the renowned Institute of Mother and Child. This unique initiative focuses on innovative solutions in healthcare for women and children, offering startups an unparalleled opportunity to spread their wings, test their projects, and gain valuable support.

Mother and Child Startup Challenge – A Challenge for Innovators

On May 14, 2024, the much-anticipated third edition of the „Mother and Child Startup Challenge” was launched. The competition is aimed at ambitious startups and companies that want to bring modern ideas to the medical market, having a real impact on improving the quality of life for patients. This initiative promotes creativity and supports the development of the best projects in the field of women’s and children’s health.

Why Participate?

For young entrepreneurs and medical innovators, this is a unique opportunity to showcase their unique products or processes that can revolutionize the healthcare sector. The third edition of the competition promises a fresh wave of enthusiasm and inspiration, with the chance to present ideas to industry experts. Participants have the opportunity to gain financial support, mentorship, and the potential to develop their business.

Categories and Criteria

In the third edition of the „Mother and Child Startup Challenge,” startups and entities bringing innovative solutions to the broad field of healthcare for women and children will be rewarded. Innovations in the areas of diagnostics, prevention, and treatment of women’s diseases and the periods of pregnancy and postpartum, as well as all fields of pediatrics and improvements in hospital administrative and organizational processes, can be submitted.

Benefits for Participants

By participating in the competition, young companies have the chance to present their ideas and products to renowned experts in the fields of medicine and business. This is an excellent opportunity to establish valuable business contacts, gain new knowledge and skills needed to effectively run their startup.

The third edition of the Mother and Child Startup Challenge is aimed at all startups and innovators who want to bring changes to healthcare for women and children. It is an excellent opportunity to present their ideas and gain support.

Inspirations from the Past

In previous editions of the competition, many outstanding projects that significantly impacted the medical sector were highlighted. For example, the winner of the first edition, Infermedica, was recognized in the World’s Best Digital Health Companies 2024 ranking. Solutions like Infermedica’s Symptom Checker increase patient access to reliable medical information, which is crucial for informed health decisions.

The main prizes in the second edition of the Mother and Child Startup Challenge were awarded to Clebre, Calmsie, TruScreen, and Laserobaria2.0_S.

As promised by the Institute of Mother and Child, the organizer of the competition, this edition will be even more inspiring and full of surprises. What gems will be discovered and utilized for the benefit of patients this time? We will find out soon!

Detailed information about the competition rules and the application process can be found on the website: www.mcsc.pl.

How to Apply?

Don’t wait – apply to the competition and shape the future of healthcare for mothers and children. The application form is available at www.motherandchildstartupchallenge.pl. Submissions for this edition are accepted until June 23, 2024.

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I invite you to closely follow the „Health Tech of the Week” series, where we will uncover more fascinating stories from the world of medical technologies that are changing the face of healthcare. If you are running an innovative project in the field of new technologies and medicine or want to recommend an interesting solution, write to us at: [email protected].

Since November 2023, I have been introducing startups in the Health Tech of The Week series, which have the potential or are already revolutionizing the medical services market by using new technologies. Today, I want to present Health Venture Lab, an international network of healthcare innovation stakeholders, supported by GE Healthcare. Their activities aim to accelerate medical innovations and support their market entry. I invite you to read the interview with Olivia Blanchard, the Managing Director of the organization.

What were the beginnings of your organization?

Our activities started in 2018 with an ambitious vision: to create the first accelerator program, which we named Reactor, operating under the auspices of EIT Health, without equity participation. We began our activities in the form of an intensive training camp, which at that time met the needs of health-themed startups at an early or mid-stage of development. The beginning of our activities coincided with a period when the urgent need for transformation in the digital health sector became particularly visible. This was later further highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic. We are even more committed to providing innovators with the necessary resources and mentoring support, which are crucial for success in the dynamically changing world of healthcare.

Why did you decide to work for HVL?

I am from France, but my career path took me to Central and Eastern Europe, where I explored local innovation ecosystems and startup policy. Meeting the dynamic team at Health Venture Lab, I was immediately drawn to their mission of supporting innovation, especially in the healthcare sector. Moving from the theoretical concepts I had been working with to a real impact on reality made a huge impression on me. The opportunity to take on a leadership role, especially for a young specialist, was an extremely attractive challenge for me. Joining Health Venture Lab was not only an important step in my career but also an opportunity for personal development and a chance to contribute personally to an inspiring team.

What is the biggest achievement of HVL so far?

During our work, we have had many achievements that can be called milestones in our development. However, the essence of our success is building a wide network and creating influential partnerships. Collaborating with leading academic institutions, such as MIT or the István Széchenyi University of Gyor, shows that we have gained trust and recognition in the industry and academic environment. Such cooperation influences our subsequent activities and drives our mission, which is to develop innovation.

Tell us more about your mission

Health Venture Lab is a global hub of innovation, bridging the gap between startups and the healthcare sector. With foundations in Europe, we want to support local entrepreneurs in their ambitions to change and redefine current healthcare paradigms. Our initiatives, from the Young Talent Program to Catalyst Europe, are strategically designed to build a new generation of innovators interested in supporting healthcare. We now place particular emphasis on using AI in sustainable solutions.

How can Polish startups benefit from joining HVL?

Joining Health Venture Lab offers Polish startups access to a robust international network that includes education and financing pathways. Our achievements, including being recognized as one of the top ten European MedTech accelerators by Sifted in 2019, highlight the credibility and quality of our programs. Partnership with industry giants, such as GE Healthcare, further enhances the value of our offer, providing startups with exposure and unique development opportunities.

At what stage of development should startups join HVL to benefit the most?

We position ourselves as a solution suited for startups at an early or mid-stage of development. Having a solid base and a product at the MVP stage related to Health Tech is the moment when our acceleration program can support such a startup. We facilitate product-market fit and scaling growth.

What do you think are the future directions of health technology and how will the medical services market change?

The future of health technology is an evolution towards more personalized care, using AI to improve diagnosis and administrative efficiency. We expect the medical services market to undergo a transformation towards more patient-oriented care, driven by data analysis and technology.

How do you see the use of AI in the medical industry?

The integration of AI in the medical industry heralds a new era of precision medicine and personalized healthcare. From aiding in diagnosis and treatment planning to streamlining administrative tasks, AI has the potential to enhance every aspect of healthcare delivery. However, realizing this potential requires addressing significant challenges such as data privacy, regulatory compliance, and ethical issues, to ensure responsible and fair implementation of AI technology.

What are the further development plans for HVL?

We plan to further develop our acceleration programs and increase the number of innovators from Central and Eastern Europe. We also aspire to expand our operational capabilities to introduce innovative programs that will accelerate transformations in the healthcare sector.

In today’s entry from the „Health Tech of the Week” series, we will focus on Talkie.ai, an innovative startup that is changing the face of customer service in the medical sector through advanced AI technology. The breakthrough brought by Talkie.ai pertains not only to the way of communicating with patients but also to the efficiency and accessibility of medical services.

Talkie.ai was founded with the inspiration to solve the inefficiency problem of classic call centers, which too often negatively impacted patients’ experiences. Medical facilities are known for the difficulty in getting through to them. This limits the accessibility of medical services for many people: the elderly, busy individuals, or those with small children. In the era of growing AI technology capabilities, the startup’s founders saw an opportunity to automate telephone service, thereby relieving medical staff from routine tasks, which will allow them to focus on care and support for patients. According to Talkie.ai’s premise, everyone benefits from the automation of customer service in the medical sector – payers, medical facilities, doctors, and ultimately all of us as patients.

Virtual Receptionist

Talkie.ai’s solution is the so-called Virtual Receptionist – a bot based on artificial intelligence algorithms that can conduct conversations with multiple patients at once, handling matters such as scheduling appointments, ordering prescriptions, or managing examination dates. Thanks to the ability to understand natural language and medical terminology, the bot is capable of taking over most tasks that patients typically turn to health care facilities for. In more complicated cases, the bot involves a call center consultant or medical registration in the conversation. This eliminates the potential frustration of the patient, which would arise if he had to wait for a connection or could not get through at all.

What can particularly facilitate the work of medical facilities, compared to the solutions they have used so far, is support during outgoing conversations. The Virtual Receptionist can inform a group of patients about a change of appointment date, the absence of a doctor, or equipment failure. Similarly, the bot is capable of calling a selected patient base as part of a preventive or informational campaign, which will save time that the staff can spend on other activities.

Changes in Medicine After the Pandemic

During the COVID pandemic, it became more apparent than ever before that many patients do not need a „physical” visit to a facility, but only needed to: inquire about a visit, change the date, or place an order for a prescription. This experience showed that improving contact with the medical facility is an opportunity to genuinely relieve it. However, for this change to be real, all groups, including patients, must engage in it. Thanks to awareness campaigns encouraging patients to cancel appointments, there was an increase in responsibility for health care resources and shorter queues, which ultimately will result in a healthier society. As representatives of Talkie.ai say – within 12 months we see a significant change in the perception of confirming appointments as a responsibility of all participants in the health system – both medical facilities, which must ensure that their patients have a real possibility of contact to cancel an appointment in time, as well as patients, who have begun to perceive this issue as a personal responsibility. We are glad to be part of this change.

Plans for the Future

Talkie.ai is continuously expanding its cooperation with Hospital Information System (HIS) providers and their integration with the startup’s solution. The next step is expansion into the American market, which is a key element of Talkie.ai’s strategy. Adaptation efforts, such as integration with EHR systems specific to the USA and support for multilingualism (in addition to English, Spanish language support is also necessary), are already underway. We believe that the solution offered by the startup not only streamlines the management of medical data but also contributes to faster access to health services.

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We invite you to continue following the „Health Tech of the Week” series, where we will discover more fascinating stories from the circle of medical technologies that are changing the face of healthcare. If you are leading an innovative project in the field of new technologies and medicine or want to recommend an interesting solution, please contact us at: [email protected].

In today’s installment of the Health Tech of The Week series, we present Feyenally, which is on a mission to deliver innovative solutions in ophthalmic care, improving the quality of life for patients and facilitating the work of professionals.

The main inspiration for creating the Feyenally startup and its application enabling self-check of vision defects – eyeTEST, was the challenge associated with the lack of ophthalmic care worldwide, especially in regions with limited access to specialists. The deficit of optometrists, i.e., individuals capable of selecting the right glasses, is huge globally. The founders of Feyenally openly say that this gap cannot be filled without the help of technology. Their project is a tool that will allow patients to examine their vision at home, eliminating the time and distance barrier between them and a specialist.

Objective Vision Examination

The eyeTEST application allows patients to examine their eyes at home using only their smartphone. The examination is carried out without using the patient’s subjective assessment, which usually forms the basis of the vision defect diagnosis. During a basic examination, patients are often asked to provide feedback to the doctor, which can lead to errors due to subjective assessment. This can also be influenced by the time of day and environment – whether our eyes are rested or tired, whether the air is dry, etc. Utilizing objective research methods offered by eyeTEST is a step forward in improving the accuracy of diagnosis and treatment. As a result, users receive accurate and repeatable examination results, which are crucial for accurate diagnosis and treatment. The eyeTEST app does not replace an ophthalmic visit but can replace a simple visit to an optometrist. Thanks to it, patients can regularly monitor their vision health and quickly respond to changes.

Support Around the World

Having accurate and quick diagnostic tools, such as eyeTEST, is extremely important for the global population with limited access to ophthalmic care. It offers a chance for early detection of vision problems and quick referral of patients for treatment, which can reduce complications and improve the quality of life. For people in some developing countries, this may be the only chance to check their vision.

Development Plans

As Mateusz Toporowicz and Piotr Kruszyński, founders of Feyenally, say, the best time to introduce such technology was yesterday, and the second-best time is today. The current moment is perfect for developing and introducing innovative solutions in ophthalmic care due to the dynamic development of technology, increasing demand for remote healthcare, and growing social awareness about the importance of prevention and health monitoring.

The company focuses on continuous improvement of algorithms and integration of new technologies to provide users with even better results and experience. Moreover, data is constantly being collected from a broader group of patients. In the coming months, Feyenally will focus on further refining the eyeTEST app and conducting pilot implementations. Work is also underway on certifying this solution as a medical device.

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We invite you to continue following the „Health Tech of the Week” series, where we will discover more fascinating stories from the realm of medical technology that are changing the face of healthcare. If you are leading an innovative project in the field of new technologies and medicine or want to recommend an interesting solution, please contact us at: [email protected].