You're Invited: Free Pediatric Innovation Summit

Register now to attend this free, one-day Pediatric Innovation Summit hosted by Arkansas Children's Innovation Center on June 17 in Little Rock! Seating is limited, please register by June 10, 2022.

Clinton Presidential Library, Little Rock, AR

8:45 AM - 4:00 PM

Keynote Speaker:

Anthony Chang, MD

Chief Intelligence and Innovation Officer

Children's Health of Orange County

Panel Discussions Include:

Health Systems Innovation

Pediatric Innovators

Emerging Technologies

An opening reception will be held from 5:00 PM -7:00 PM at the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum the night before the Summit.

Approval for CME Credit is Pending.

Register Now for the Free Pediatric Innovation Summit

Register now to attend this free, one-day Pediatric Innovation Summit hosted by Arkansas Children's Innovation Center on June 17 in Little Rock! Seating is limited, please register by June 10, 2022.

Clinton Presidential Library, Little Rock, AR

8:45 AM - 4:00 PM

Keynote Speaker:

Anthony Chang, MD

Chief Intelligence and Innovation Officer

Children's Health of Orange County

Panel Discussions Include:

Health Systems Innovation

Pediatric Innovators

Emerging Technologies

An opening reception will be held from 5:00 PM -7:00 PM at the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum the night before the Summit.

Approval for CME Credit is Pending.

HEALTHTECH ARKANSAS AND MEDAXIOM COLLABORATE TO LAUNCH HEARTX, A CARDIOVASCULAR ACCELERATOR PROGRAM

HealthTech Arkansas and MedAxiom have come together to create HeartX, a cardiovascular-focused healthcare accelerator, to facilitate guaranteed hospital pilot projects and clinical trials for accomplished, early-stage companies bringing new cardiovascular innovations to market.

Applications for the 2022 HeartX cohort are now open, and companies will be selected by September 30, 2022. The program is seeking companies in three categories: digital health and software, medical devices and diagnostic platforms. Each company will receive $150,000 of investment capital and is guaranteed at least two pilot projects with Arkansas healthcare providers.

HealthTech Arkansas is in its fifth year of administering accelerator programs focused exclusively on provider engagement with early-stage companies. It works with both Arkansas-based and out-of-state companies.

MedAxiom, the cardiovascular community’s premier source for organizational performance solutions, is transforming cardiovascular care by bridging technology, innovation and care delivery. MedAxiom unites cardiovascular organizations, leaders and industry partners to achieve the Quadruple Aim of better outcomes, lower costs, improved patient experience, and improved clinician experience.

“The wonderful part of this collaboration is that it leverages the strengths of each of our organizations,” said Jeff Stinson, director of HealthTech Arkansas. “We have proven competencies in delivering guaranteed hospital pilot projects and clinical trials, and MedAxiom brings a national network and an impressive array of services for early-stage cardiovascular companies. We’re excited about our ability to deliver tremendous value for healthcare startups and for our health system partners.”

“MedAxiom has a strong focus on both innovation and supporting the healthcare start-up community,” said Joseph Sasson, PhD, MedAxiom’s executive vice president of Ventures. “MedAxiom has found a strong partner in HealthTech Arkansas and together we will be able to provide the guidance, investment, exposure and industry reach that can accelerate start-ups from pilots to full commercial scale. We look forward to working together to foster innovation and promote the widespread adoption of valuable technologies and services in the cardiovascular domain.”

The Arkansas Economic Development Commission awarded a grant to HealthTech Arkansas through a program designed to increase acceleration activities in targeted industries in the state. The program is conducted in partnership with 12 healthcare providers — Arkansas Heart Hospital, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, Arkansas Urology, Baptist Health, CHI St. Vincent, Conway Regional, Mercy, Northwest Health, OrthoArkansas, St. Bernards Healthcare, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), and Washington Regional Medical Center. HeartX will replace the current cardiovascular-focused accelerator led by HealthTech Arkansas.

More information can be found at HeartXaccelerator.com.

ABOUT HEALTHTECH ARKANSAS

HealthTech Arkansas is an accelerator and early-stage investment fund that recruits worldwide for the most accomplished startups in the areas of digital health, medical devices, and diagnostic platforms. Those companies accepted into the program are guaranteed at least two pilot projects or clinical trials from among eleven leading hospitals, health systems, and physician practices in Arkansas. HealthTech Arkansas is the only program in the U.S. to guarantee pilot projects and clinical trials with healthcare providers. More information can be found at HealthTechArkansas.com.

ABOUT MEDAXIOM

MedAxiom, an ACC Company, is the cardiovascular community’s premier source for organizational performance solutions. MedAxiom is transforming cardiovascular care by combining the knowledge and power of 450+ cardiovascular organization members, thousands of administrators, clinicians and coders and 40+ industry partners. Through the delivery of proprietary tools, smart data and proven strategies, MedAxiom helps cardiovascular organizations achieve the Quadruple Aim of better outcomes, lower costs, improved patient experience and improved clinician experience. Learn more at medaxiom.com.

Arkansas Children’s Innovation Center and Partners Name Winners of 48-Hour Hackathon

Tulsa Team Develops Solution to Connect Healthcare Providers to Emotional Supports

Nine teams from across the region brought expertise and collaborative spirit to the inaugural Arkansas Children’s Innovation Center Digital Health Challenge, and a team from Tulsa won the $10,000 prize for creating an app that would seamlessly connect healthcare workers to emotional support resources.

Arkansas Children’s Innovation Center, in collaboration with Cartwheel Startup Studio, Conductor, Startup Junkie Consulting, HealthTech Arkansas and the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Arkansas, offered the teams a list of curated and vetted problems that could be solved with digital solutions. Contestants problem-solved and created for 48 hours in an event known as a hackathon, alongside mentors from the partnering organizations before presenting their solutions to a panel of experts including clinicians, administrators and investors.

The winning team, “Tulsa’s OK”, included participants Hailey Mortimore, Elena Haskins, Nate Fisher and Cole Anderson, all of Tulsa. The team collaborated to develop an app with a complex decision tree and a closed-loop reporting system that automates steps of Arkansas Children’s WeCARE program.

To ensure each team member is equipped to bring their best to Arkansas Children’s every day, the health system developed WeCARE to provide a dedicated core of trained support staff who provide comfort, care and compassion to teammates experiencing a difficulty related to work or home. One of the challenges presented to the hackthon teams was to improve the process of connecting team members to assistance through WeCARE. Tulsa’s OK app would allow clinicians who have experienced a traumatic event to receive help more promptly, with better defined outcomes and quicker referrals to additional levels of support and care when needed.

Many of the solutions the hackathon teams presented will continue to inspire further innovation throughout the health system.

“The rapid-fire exchange of ideas among all the participating teams highlighted the importance of working together across industries and skillsets to find concepts that help us provide the best care possible to both our patients and our team members,” said Rick Barr, MD, MBA, chief clinical officer of Arkansas Children’s. “Every team brought innovative thinking to the challenges and pushed us to reimagine how collaboration and partnership can elevate healthcare.”

All teams participating in the hackathon retained the rights to the intellectual property incorporated in their solutions, and Arkansas Children’s will continue working with a number of the teams to support product development with the aim of piloting solutions in their hospitals and clinics.

ABOUT ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S

Arkansas Children's, Inc. is the only healthcare system in the state solely dedicated to caring for Arkansas' more than 700,000 children. The private, non-profit organization includes two pediatric hospitals, a pediatric research institute and USDA nutrition center, a philanthropic foundation, a nursery alliance, statewide clinics, and many education and outreach programs — all focused on fulfilling a promise to define and deliver unprecedented child health. Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) is a 336-bed, Magnet-recognized facility in Little Rock operating the state’s only Level I pediatric trauma center; the state's only burn center; the state's only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit; the state's only pediatric intensive care unit; the state’s only pediatric surgery program with Level 1 verification from the American College of Surgeons (ACS); the state’s only magnetoencephalography (MEG) system for neurosurgical planning and cutting-edge research; and the state's only nationally recognized pediatric transport program. Additionally, ACH is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report in four pediatric subspecialties (2021—2022): Cardiology & Heart Surgery, Nephrology, Pulmonology and Urology. ACH is one of only five hospitals in the nation that have achieved Magnet Status, ACS Level 1 verification and a Beacon award from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. Arkansas Children’s Northwest (ACNW), the first and only pediatric hospital in the Northwest Arkansas region, opened in Springdale in early 2018. ACNW operates a 24-bed inpatient unit; a surgical unit with five operating rooms; outpatient clinics offering over 20 subspecialties; diagnostic services; imaging capabilities; occupational therapy services; and Northwest Arkansas' only pediatric emergency department, equipped with 30 exam rooms. Generous philanthropic and volunteer engagement has sustained Arkansas Children's since it began as an orphanage in 1912, and today ensures the system can deliver on its promise of unprecedented child health. To learn more, visit archildrens.org.

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HTA and U of A Partner for NWA Health System Innovation

HealthTech Arkansas and the University of Arkansas have teamed up to create an innovative new program to focus on the challenges within the healthcare industry and create new solutions to bring to the marketplace.

The Northwest Arkansas Biodesign Sprints (NABS) program is a partnership with the university’s Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation (OEI), the U of A Department of Biomedical Engineering, HealthTech Arkansas and four major regional healthcare systems.

Housed at the Collaborative in Bentonville and inspired by the successful Byers Center for Biodesign at Stanford University, NABS will leverage existing partnerships to:

  • Build a community of people trained in innovation methodologies,

  • Expose clinical and healthcare system needs and

  • Yield early-stage ideas and prototypes for the marketplace.

“The NABS program was born out of our experiences working intensively with Arkansas Children’s Hospital and Research Institute over the last 18 months,” said Sarah Goforth, executive director of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation. “With the benefit of partners at Arkansas Children’s who were willing to be out front in the creation of new ways of driving innovation, we learned that problems and ideas often lie dormant in the minds of busy clinicians who may not have avenues to advance them. This is fertile ground for innovation.”

NABS will initially partner with four hospitals and health systems: Arkansas Children’s, Washington Regional Medical Center, Mercy and Northwest Health.

Two types of sprints — brief, focused meetings designed to identify challenges and offer solutions — will be held within partner hospitals and led by administrators from HealthTech Arkansas. OEI, which has supported the development and success of multiple medical device and diagnostic startup companies over the last five years, will connect student talent from across business and engineering disciplines with the sprints, strengthening the capacity of the teams and deepening the healthcare innovation culture on the U of A campus. The Department of Biomedical Engineering will support the prototyping and testing of new innovations that emerge from the program.

“NABS will bring the infrastructure, resources and focus needed to help these four health systems develop innovative solutions to their own challenges and create their own intellectual property,” said Jeff Stinson, director of HealthTech Arkansas. “We’re very excited to leverage the relationships we’ve built with our state’s hospitals and health systems to build upon the good work we’re doing with them.”

The sprints that NABS programming will focus on are: (1) challenge sprints, which are department-level exercises to identify challenges and problems that lend themselves to new innovations, and (2) design sprints, which bring together internal and external subject matter experts to brainstorm solutions to known problems. For each, NABS administrators will bring post-sprint resources to continue developing the innovations towards commercialization.

“The programming content builds off our recent NIH grant focused on incorporating design, entrepreneurship and service learning within the biomedical engineering curriculum. The innovations developed by NABS teams will be directly informed by the needs of patients and clinicians, resulting in a greater likelihood they will improve clinical outcomes,” said Raj Rao, Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering. “NABS will provide outsized value in the development of talent, market-ready innovations and scalable startups by creating a mechanism for clinicians, engineers and entrepreneurs to partner in an immersive context.”

NABS is funded by a $685,330 grant from the Walton Family Foundation and is the second of three verticals (the first being outdoor recreation and the third being software) planned for the Greenhouse, OEI’s product and business incubation facility at the Collaborative in Bentonville.

The Rise and Challenges of Female Founders

It’s no surprise to anyone that female founders have historically lacked the same access to startup capital as their male counterparts. In a 2018 BCG article, it was noted that when females pitch their ideas to investors, they receive $1 million less in funding, but their companies generate more revenue than companies founded by men. And a 2019 BCG article indicated a staggering $2.5 to $5 trillion (yes, with a “T”) could be added to the global economy if females participated equally as entrepreneurs.

There are some positive data points, though. Eighty-three of the 595 (or 14%) of the new “unicorn” companies (those with a valuation exceeding $1B) added in 2021 were founded or co-founded by women, according toCrunchbase. When the 30-year average for the amount of venture capital received by females is 2.4% — which has flatlined in recent yearsaccording to a Harvard study— that means females are adding companies to the roster of unicorns at a disproportionately higher rate than men.

At HealthTech Arkansas, we’re proud of the women founders of our cohort companies. Since we launched in 2018, 29% of our cohort companies are female-founded or co-founded. And we do everything we can to promote and encourage women innovators in our Arkansas-based health systems. It’s not only the right thing to do, but it’s also good for our investors!

HealthTech Arkansas Cohort Companies in the News

2018 cohort company Ejenta spoke at HIMSS on Health Advancements and Human Spaceflight. The Space Exploration road map now includes planning for missions that are increased in duration and distance from earth and with more diverse crew members. This has dramatically increased the demand for advanced augmented, autonomous supportive technologies. Learn more here. 

2018 cohort company Explorer Surgical has expanded its presence in the pediatric orthopedic medical device space with the announcement of its newest customer, Pega Medical. Specializing in the design, development, evaluation and manufacturing of medical devices for pediatric orthopedics, Pega Medical was founded in 1996 and its implantable devices reach children living with orthopedic conditions in more than 70 countries, including within multiple top-tier children's hospitals. Learn more here.

2018 cohort company Lapovations recently participated in the prestigious Texas Life Sciences Forum in Houston, Texas, and was selected as one of the “10 Most Promising Companies.” The Texas Life Science Forum is the premier life science event in Texas that brings emerging life science companies together with academics, investors, and industry professionals. Learn more here.

2019 cohort company Droice Labs conducted a webinar to discuss ways to effectively harness patient data for real-world impact. Real-world patient data was not collected with the goal to personalize patient care, yet many attempts to repurpose this data for finding optimal treatments focus on fitting messy, noisy, and biased real-world data into pristine data models. This not only requires expensive and time-consuming cleaning processes but also strips away potentially valuable signals. Watch the webinar here.

2020 cohort company Raydian Oximetry won the Platinum Award at the UCSF-Stanford Pediatric Device Consortium Accelerator Pitch Competition. Learn more here.