How Ireland's start-ups are tackling some of Europe's biggest health challenges

EIT Health explains the support it can provide to promising start-ups, and how companies from Ireland are making their mark.

Europe faces a turning point in health. Chronic disease and growing multi-morbidity cause an estimated economic loss of €115 billion per year. Combined with an ageing population, these challenges are placing huge pressures on health systems and enterprises across Europe.

Now, more than ever, we must take the opportunity to transform healthcare in Europe, for healthier citizens and a re-energised economy.

As we look to answer some of Europe’s biggest health challenges, and in light of an increasingly interconnected world, we need to connect experts and innovators to bring innovative healthcare services and products into the hands of those that need it most.

When making that vision a reality, a trusted environment for cross-border collaboration is key.

That’s where EIT Health comes into play.

Backed by the European Union, EIT Health has a community of 150 world-leading partners working across borders to connect business, research and education.

We’re dedicated to finding solutions that will strengthen healthcare systems, promote better health of citizens, and contribute to a sustainable health economy in Europe.

Our thriving is ecosystem is made possible through pan-EU representation, with headquarters in Munich and six regional innovation hubs.

Cutting-edge innovations: Turning ideas into reality

Through our Education, Accelerator and Innovation programmes, we work with health innovators to identify their needs, be it access to finance, knowledge, stakeholders, new markets – and match them to enable new and fruitful collaborations.

Our annual Call for Proposals to be included in the EIT Health Business Plan helps to build a comprehensive portfolio of projects that deliver value to patients, citizens and healthcare systems.

Each project submitted needs to meet one of the six most urgent healthcare challenges that we’ve identified. These challenges focus on reforming care pathways, healthcare transformation, harnessing real-world data, bringing care home, health in the workplace, and fostering healthier lives.

In the UK-Ireland regional innovation hub, some of our most successful projects are reaching key milestones and have the potential to revolutionise healthcare.

Taking a closer look at EIT Health supported medtech start-ups

Ireland’s rich ecosystem makes it an attractive base with industry, and investors are looking closely at its booming start-up scene.

In the EIT Health community, Ireland is recognised for its stellar medtech reputation. We have long supported the region’s most promising start-ups, many of which are active in medtech.

Take Dublin-based CroíValve for example. In February of this year, CroíValve had its first successful human use of its device, paving the way for new and minimally invasive treatment options for patients with tricuspid regurgitation – a heart valve condition with progressive symptoms.

CroíValve first received EIT Health support back in 2017 and has since thrived as an EIT Health Innovation project. In keeping with our focus area of “Care Pathways”, CroíValve provides an innovative health delivery solution that is a dramatic improvement on the existing practice.

Tympany Medical is another medtech company making waves in our network and beyond. The Galway-based start-up, in collaboration with NUI Galway, Leiden University Hospital and YES! Delft, is developing EyeVU, a sterile endoscope for complex ear surgery that allows surgeons to gain the benefits of endoscopic visualisation while maintaining their two-handed operating technique.

Having participated in our Education and Accelerator programmes, Tympany received €1.1 million in EIT Health support, with €500,000 deriving from a new Start-up Amplifier instrument aimed at bolstering start-ups and their innovations.

The first of its kind, the EIT Health Start-up Amplifier launched this year to give top start-ups the opportunity to play a key role in EIT Health Innovation Projects, with the aim of rapid market penetration of innovative products and services.

Galway is also home to Praxis Medical Devices. Their revolutionary CapBuster device is designed to safely and reliably penetrate completely blocked arteries, incorporating engineering intelligence at a nano level that has never been used before in angioplasty. It comprises a guidewire and balloon catheter combination device, with the addition of unique patented screw-thread technology. Recognising this device’s potential to transform the treatment of chronic total occlusions, Capbuster were successful in a recent EIT Health Accelerator competition and awarded €40,000, along with business and mentoring support.

One Projects, Ostoform, Signmum Surgical, Loci Orthopaedics and Aurigen are just some of the leading EIT Health supported start-ups from Ireland. Over 65 Irish start-ups have received our support to date, and our highly productive start-up environment has seen start-ups raise over €29 million since 2015.

Find out more about how you can be a part of our network at www.eithealth.eu/ or contact clc.uk-ireland@eithealth.eu.