The Center for Healthcare Entrepreneurship of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IIT-H), had hosted a “Med Tech” symposium to bring together key leaders in the field of medical and healthcare technologies for a discussion on challenges and developments in the medical devices start-up ecosystem recently.
Panel discussions were held on topics such as Early Stage Funding, Medical Device Regulatory Aspects and Industry Perspective that will help start-ups in the domain, among others.
“A need was felt to usher in innovation and incubation culture in academic institutions. IIT-Hyderabad has always been progressive to address such needs. With strong research in biomedical engineering and members of faculty from other departments engaged in interdisciplinary research in allied areas, it was only appropriate to put identify healthcare as the theme for this endeavour,” said director of IIT-H B.S. Murty.
“The event was intended to connect IIT-H incubated start-ups with investors and venture capitalists in the healthcare technology sector. It was a great networking opportunity and created a lot of avenues for IIT-H start-ups. It also provided an exposure to the regulatory environment of the healthcare technology sector,” said head of operations, CfHE, U.B. Desai.
Speaking on “Foundation for CfHE: Inception and Activities”, director of CfHE Rajesh Mashruwala said: “A personal experience at the hospital long back threw light to the surprising fact that most of the hospital equipment, nearly 80 per cent, were imported. So, healthcare innovation seemed to be the key solution in providing affordable healthcare solutions to all in the country. Center for Healthcare Entrepreneurship was founded and funded with this goal”.
“New and emerging innovations, smartphone technologies and cloud computing are transforming healthcare into a model that is increasingly patient-centred and transparent. The digitalisation of healthcare and deep tech in healthcare space are the new innovation accelerators, catalysing a transition in the methods of healthcare delivery from the traditional hospital or office-based visitations to technology-based encounters that are virtual, on-demand, and patient-generated,” said MD ENDIYA Partners Ramesh Byrapaneni.
