Dream, dare, do: how patients and health foundations drive artificial organ innovations

Abstract

Designing a new medical device always involves striking a balance between business goals and patient needs. Most of the time, this leads to small improvements—what we call incremental innovation—on devices that already exist. But what if you're aiming for something more disruptive—an innovation that truly meets patient needs and transforms how care is delivered? These kinds of breakthroughs are much harder to get off the ground. They often lack funding and require development partners who aren't yet well established. One powerful way to build support is by sharing stories from the patient's perspective. This can inspire enthusiasm and buy-in from key stakeholders. However, traditional subsidies often aren’t enough to move your project from research to a working clinical prototype. New funding models are needed. In this session, we’ll explore three different artificial organ projects driven by patients and Dutch health charity organisations to learn how to engage patients effectively—and how to build a successful, patient-driven enterprise from the very beginning.”

Chairs

• J. Boomker

The programme