Medtech

  • USA: Telemedicine , « AW10 » aims to save the time of patients & doctors

    April 26, 2017, Orlando, « American well », the telemedicine services provider has just announced its new digital platform AW10, who will ease the use of providers and health systems using the platform.

    A challenge in telemedicine today is some digital practices are not easy to implement, and sometimes they are even time consuming for both doctors and patients.

    Both Physician and patients’ time is precious,  in order to create a better telemedicine world, « American well » wants physicians can use telehealth as the way they practice medicine in the real world. That’s why they design  « AW10 » who is an enterprise service in the form of the digital platform which contains over 100 new features specific to providers to make their experience with American Well’s platform easier, more comprehensive and efficient. 

    The benefits for doctors:

    • It streamlines the enrollment and verification process for new doctors, so they can start delivering live visits within minutes.
    • It allows doctors to move easily between automated and manual prescribing and offers a revamped coding module to aid with consistent reimbursement.

    The benefits for patients:

    • It offers patients the automated and workflow optimisation features including insurance verification, automated scheduling, prescribing, payments and notifications. 

  • Big data : l’Association malaisienne de santé mentale cible les jeunes à risques (partenariat IBM)

    IBM a annoncé en avril 2017 qu’elle allait fournir à l’Association malaisienne de la santé mentale (MMHA) son expertise dans le domaine des médias sociaux et de la gestion des big data pour élaborer une stratégie d’utilisation des réseaux sociaux afin d’identifier les jeunes à risque souffrant de problèmes de santé mentale.

    Il s’agit d’une méthode alternative pour aborder plus facilement les personnes présentant des symptômes inquiétants et pour fournir de l’information à ceux qui recherchent de l’aide ou s’interrogent sur des sujets liés à la santé mentale.

    Améliorer les campagnes menées par la MMHA sur les réseaux sociaux

    29,2 % des Malaisiens âgés de 16 ans et plus souffrent de troubles mentaux

    Les résultats d’une enquête nationale sur la santé et la morbidité (the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2015) récemment publiée par le Ministère de la santé de la Malaisie montrent que 29,2 % des Malaisiens âgés de 16 ans et plus souffrent de problèmes de santé mentale. La prévalence la plus élevée a été enregistrée par les auteurs de l’étude chez les 16-19 ans.

    IBM fournira son expertise dans les médias sociaux pour mieux sensibiliser la population aux maladies mentales

    Les stratégies misent en place par IBM et la MMHA auront pour objectif de sensibiliser le public aux maladies mentales et à leurs problèmes connexes.

    IBM sollicitera ses compétences pour déployer de nouvelles approches afin de rendre plus efficaces les campagnes menées par l’organisme malaisien sur les médias sociaux à propos de la santé mentale et d’élaborer des stratégies performantes sur ces espaces virtuels.

    Dans un deuxième temps, la société utilisera son expertise dans les réseaux sociaux dans l’optique de créer une feuille de route visant à améliorer l’engagement de la MMHA sur ces réseaux. Elle sera conjointement mise en œuvre au cours de cette première année de partenariat par l’association et les employés bénévoles d’IBM.

    Un système d’analyse des médias sociaux pour dé-stigmatiser les maladies mentales

    « L’objectif de cette approche basée sur les médias sociaux est de permettre à la MMHA de lutter contre la stigmatisation des maladies mentales et de sensibiliser la population aux comportements à suivre pour conserver une bonne santé mentale via une information provenant de sources fiables, d’échanges et de mises en relation globales, en particulier entre jeunes et avec des personnes qui se retrouvent confrontées à des problèmes similaires », a expliqué M. See Cheng Siang, le président de la MMHA.

    Le système analytique d’IBM a révélé le potentiel des médias sociaux dans la dé-stigmatisation des troubles d’ordre mental et, par conséquent, leur capacité à inciter ceux qui s’interrogent sur ce sujet ou qui présentent des symptômes à solliciter une aide.

    Les résultats obtenus par le dispositif ont poussé la MMHA à entreprendre d’améliorer sa plateforme en l’appréhendant comme un moyen d’engager et de partager des informations critiques sur ce domaine de santé particulier avec des personnes qui n’oseraient peut-être pas demander de l’aide en temps normal ou n’y penseraient pas.

    Impact Grant IBM : une initiative pro bono pour soutenir les organisations à but non lucratif

    Le projet est développé dans le cadre du programme Impact Grant d’IBM, une initiative pro bono qui consiste à fournir une expertise et des technologies cognitives, mobiles ou encore sociales pour soutenir les organisations à but non lucratif cherchant à améliorer leurs services.

    Il est financé grâce à une subvention obtenue par l’association en 2016 pour utiliser IBM Social Media Analytics, un puissant outil de suivi permettant de saisir et de consolider les connaissances des médias sociaux afin d’analyser les opinions, les interactions et les modèles de conversation exprimés sur Facebook, Twitter, les communautés en ligne, les forums et les blogs dans le but d’enquêter sur la perception publique des thématiques liées aux problèmes de santé mentale.

    « Avec cette subvention, nous investissons l’équivalent de 33 000 dollars US (30 305 €) en technologie et en expertise dans le cadre de notre engagement à encourager la gestion proactive de ce problème de santé », a précisé Mme Chong Chye Neo, directrice générale d’IBM Malaysia.

  • Big data: IBM helps the Malaysian Mental Health Association to engage at-risk youth

    IBM announced in April 2017 it will provide the Malaysian Mental Health Association (MMHA) its expertise in the field of social media and big data to develop a strategy for using social media to engage at-risk youth suffering from mental health issues.

    Through this alternative method, they aim to approach individuals with worrisome symptoms or providing information to those looking for help or have questions on this health area.

    Improving MMHA campaigns on social media

    29.2% of Malaysians aged 16-years-old and above are suffering from mental health problems

    The results of the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2015 recently published by the Ministry of Health of Malaysia showed that 29.2% of Malaysians aged 16-years-old and above are suffering from mental health problems. The highest prevalence was recorded among 16 to 19 years old by the authors of the study.

    IBM will apply its social media know-how to enhance public awareness on mental health

    The strategies put in place by IBM and the MMHA will aim to enhance public awareness on mental health and its related issues.

    IBM will use design thinking  to deploy new approaches to improve the effectiveness of social media campaigns on mental health issues of the organization and to develop efficient strategies on these virtual spaces.

    Secondly, the company will use expertise within its social media practice to create a roadmap to improve the engagement of the MMHA on social media. It will be implemented jointly in this first year of partnership by the organization and IBM employees volunteers.

    A social media analytical system to de-stigmatize mental health

    « The aim of the social media approach is to enable MMHA to disarm mental health stigmas, raise awareness on correct health information from reputable sources and aggregate conversations and connections, especially between young people, with others who are experiencing similar challenges, » said Mr. See Cheng Siang, MMHA president.

    IBM analytical system revealed the potential of social media in de-stigmatizing mental health and consequently, encourage those with question or symptoms to reach out for help.

    The findings spurred MMHA to strengthen its social media platform as a means to engage and share critical information on this particular health area with people who may not be inclined or may not think to openly seek help.

    IBM’s Impact Grant program: a pro bono initiative to support non-profit organizations

    The project is part of IBM’s Impact Grant program, a pro bono initiative that provides consulting expertise and also cognitive, mobile and social technologies to support non-profit organizations in serving society more effectively.

    It is funded by a grant obtained by the MMHA in 2016 to use IBM Social Media Analytics, a powerful monitoring tool that captures and consolidates insights from social media to analyze the opinions, interactions and conversation patterns expressed on Facebook, Twitter, online communities, forums and blogs to survey public perception surrounding mental health issues.

    « With this grant, we would have committed the equivalent of US$33,000 (€30,305) in technology and expertise as part of our commitment to make an impact in the proactive management of this health issue, » said Ms. Chong Chye Neo, IBM Malaysia managing director.

  • Santé BD : de la plateforme web à l’application mobile, l’accès à l’information pour tous

    Lancé en octobre 2013 par l’association CoActis Santé, le projet Santé BD avait pour objectif de permettre l’accès à l’information de santé à tous, et en particulier aux personnes souffrant de handicap, de déficience mentale ou tout simplement aux enfants.
    Depuis juin 2016, la solution est disponible sous forme d’application à destination des patients mais aussi des professionnels de santé qui voient dans le dispositif un outil d’aide à l’éducation thérapeutique des patients.

    L’accès à l’information de santé pour tous 

    Sous forme de bande dessinée personnalisable en fonction de son genre, de son âge, de son handicap et de la pathologie souhaitée, les quelques 350 fiches créées par l’association CoActis se veulent inclusive de tous les patients, quels que soient leurs difficultés de compréhension. 

    Depuis juin 2016, les fiches ont été adaptées en format application mobile. L’idée de l’application est d’ailleurs née en même temps que le projet initial, ce format étant le plus adapté à la personnalisation (sexe, âge, handicap) nécessaire à l’utilisation des fiches. Ainsi, les soignants, aidants mais aussi les patients peuvent créer et sauvegarder leur profil et accéder aux fiches dont ils ont besoin pour expliquer ou s’informer sur une pathologie. 

    Le projet d’application a été financé par plusieurs acteurs, dont la Fondation Handicap Malakoff Médéric, Santé Publique France, la CNSA et la Mairie de Paris. L’outil statistique vient d’être mis en place pour le suivi des téléchargements et on dénombre sur le mois de mars 2017 plus de 1000 téléchargements de l’application mobile. 

    Quel avenir pour le dispositif ? 

    Si CoActis Santé avait d’abord lancé le projet dans le but de répondre au besoin d’information sur les soins intrusifs, Santé BD se positionne à présent sur la prévention, l’information et le dépistage. 

    D’une part, une collaboration avec l’Education nationale est envisagée. En effet, si les fiches se destinaient d’abord aux personnes en situation de handicap, elles sont également adaptées aux enfants et aux jeunes. Ainsi, en matière d’éducation sexuelle notamment, Santé BD pourrait accompagner les infirmières scolaires dans leur travail de prévention. Un travail est actuellement effectué avec Santé Publique France concernant la prévention sexuelle, avec toute la complexité juridique (face aux jeunes enfants) et parfois culturelle que cela comporte. 

    Enfin, l’adaptation des fiches en plusieurs langues, et à l’international est également en réflexion. Déjà beaucoup de praticiens ayant une majorité de patients étrangers sont intéressés par une traduction des fiches en arabe, tamul, chinois et hindi. 
    Le lancement de l’application à l’international est également prévu, sous d’autres appellations comme « Picture My Health » en Angleterre, en partenariat avec les associations de patients. 

    Santé BD est reconnu par les acteurs publics comme une référence de l’information accessible et inclusive en santé. En témoignent les projets sur lesquels l’association travaille, comme le projet de dépistage et de prévention du cancer chez les personnes handicapées lancé par l’ARS Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. 

  • La simulation numérique en santé, enjeu de la formation des professionnels de santé (SimForHealth)

    SimForHealth département de simulation virtuelle de l’agence Interaction Healthcare, a consacré sa seconde conférence annuelle à la prise en charge du patient par la simulation numérique, le 26 avril 2017 à Paris. Collaboration entreprises et universitaires, coûts et modèles économiques, tels sont les points soulevés, comme freins au développement massif des outils de formation des professionnels utilisant de la simulation.

    La simulation numérique en santé est une révolution pédagogique : « jamais une premiere fois sur un patient ».

    La simulation numérique vise à améliorer le parcours de soin. L’intégration dans le système de santé (au niveau des formations ou de l’éducation thérapeutique du patient) est encore timide.

    Pour le Pr Granry, président de SoFraSims et dirigeant du centre de simulation du CHU d’Angers,  la simulation apporte une révolution pédagogique qui se heurte au développement des usages de ces outils numériques, à la fois par manque de connaissances technologiques, mais aussi par réticence. L’enjeu est de parvenir à faire travailler le public (universités) avec le privé car il subsiste un tabou du conflit d’intérêt entre les deux secteurs. Or ce sont les entreprises privées qui développent ces outils.

    La simulation numérique en santé permet l’apprentissage des gestes et des protocoles mais ne remplace pas la matière réelle (Pr G.Vallancien)

    La simulation numérique en santé, notamment grâce à la réalité virtuelle donne une nouvelle dimension à l’apprentissage. De l’objet de divertissement, l’outil est passé au réel outil de formation et de compréhension. L’objectif principal auquel répond la simulation est le fameux mot d’ordre : « jamais la première fois sur le patient ». La simulation numérique permet donc au praticien d’appréhender l’acte avant de le réaliser.  Selon Le Pr. Guy Vallancien, aucune machine ne peut simuler la texture d’un tissu. La simulation numérique convient pour appréhender l’ordre des procédures opératoires, ou pour l’apprentissage de certains gestes, mais sa limite reste sa frontière avec la matière réelle.

    La simulation numérique est une nouvelle forme d’accompagnement, de compagnonnage, qui ne se substitue pas au présentiel et aux relations entre professionnels pour apprendre. La simulation numérique conduit à la normalisation des procédures, à la disparition des écoles de savoir-faire. Il faut laisser une part à la créativité aux médecins dans leurs pratiques, car elle permet l’adaptation aux situations et donc l’excellence. 

    Le financement de la simulation passe par la mutualisation des outils sur un modèle économique d’abonnement 

    Le financement de ces dispositifs,  selon Olivier Gardinetti, directeur technique de SimForHealth repose sur l’opportunité de la mutualisation des outils créés. Un cas clinique peut etre très cher à la création,  l’avantage du numérique est de pouvoir mutualiser l’effort et de le proposer à un plus grand nombre pour qu’il soit accessible à un coût faible. Le nouveau modèle économique reste à définir : un système d’abonnement pour quelques dizaines d’euros est envisageable par exemple. 

    Hématologie, orthophonie, radioprotection, premières applications concrètes.

    Plateforme Hematosim – bringing the patient closer, SHIRE

    •  Plateforme web qui utilise des outils de réalité virtuelle pour simuler des cas cliniques en hématologie.
      L’objectif est de confronter et former les professionnels de santé à la prise en charge des patients  en échec thérapeutique. La plateforme est accessible sur ipad, pour travailler en équipe sur des cas patients particuliers. Multilingue et adaptée aux contraintes médico-réglementaires de chaque pays, la plateforme a été lancée au Japon.

    MedicActiv au service de la formation des orthophonistes – Université Pierre et Marie Curie

    • Serious games immersif de simulation de trois cas cliniques de dyslexie proposant un suivi et une analyse des résultats des étudiants. Une enquête de satisfaction menés auprès des étudiants souligne que les titulaires adhèrent complètement au format du serious games qui leur permet un gain de temps non-négligeable dans leur formation continue alors que les étudiants associent encore trop cet outil à de l’évaluation universitaire.

    Apprendre la radioprotection grâce à la simulation – Esprimed

    • jeu permettant l’immersion des professionnels pour apprendre les gestes simples de protection pour eux et leurs patients. Le patient soumis à un traitement de radiothérapie ne doit pas être angoissé par la radioprotection. Il faut donc former correctement les professionnels de santé à la radioprotection mais aussi à la communication au patient autour de la radioprotection. L’outil devait répondre à trois exigences : s’adresser à tous les professionnels (experts ou pas de la radioprotection), être efficace car les professionnels manquent de temps pour se former, et être pertinent en prenant en compte le quotidien du professionnel.

  • E-health: Singapore attracts investors and numerous partnerships

    In recent years, Singapore has attracted a lot of investors and companies in the digital health sector has signed numerous partnerships in the private and the public sectors.

    Let’s focus on the most recent agreements established in the field of eHealth in the city-state.

    E-health: why Singapore is attracting?

     In the APAC region, Singapore attracts e-health key-players for its reliability and its strategic location in the ASEAN. The partnership between Philips and the dedicated corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), announced in January, is an example among others.

    In 2016, Dr. Eddy Lee and Kevin Yap, two eHealth experts, explained to H&TI why the « little red dot » is so attractive on this particular market.

    According to them, the city-state is attractive to international contractors for two main reasons:

    • it is an open market on Southeast Asia;
    • it imposes strict rules to gain the confidence of global companies.

    The latest health tech projects supported by the EDB

    Zuellig Pharma investing S$50m in its first health innovation center

    On 5 April 2017, Healthcare services provider Zuellig Pharma inaugurated its first innovation center in the city-state, Zuellig Health Solutions (HSZ). It plans to invest more than S$50 million (US$35,9 M/€36,7 M) over the next five years.

    The establishment was launched with the support of Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB). So far, the company has spent nearly S$15 million (US$10,8 M/€10 M) to set up the facility.

    Holmusk collaborates with Singapore to better manage cardio diseases through big data analytics

    In early April 2017, the Singapore digital health and data analytics company Holmusk announced a collaboration with the National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS) to improve care in the field of heart failure and coronary artery disease using big data analysis.

    This three-year partnership aims to develop better predictive models that can be validated for use in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases in the city-state.

    Supported by the EDB, Holmusk will work with NHCS until 2019 to analyze aggregated data from the Singapore Cardiac Outcomes Longitudinal Database (SingCLOUD), the longitudinal study on heart health of Singaporeans database.

    Diabetes: Livongo raises US$ 52.5 million (€ 48,8M)

    The California company Livongo, specializing in digital solutions for monitoring diabetes, has raised an additional $52.5 million in a round (€48.8 million) with several investors on March 16, 2017.

    Livongo offers a blood glucose monitor accompanied with a service designed to intervene and help coach people through managing diabete. The firm said that this investment was made to extend its services to other chronic diseases related to diabetes, such as high blood pressure or hypercholesterolemia. The company also aims to enter new international markets.

    The round was led by General Catalyst and the international investor Kinnevik. Investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDBI), American Investment Holdings LLC and Microsoft Ventures also participated.

    This is the third investment round made by Livongo. The firm had already raised US$33 million (€30.6 million) and US$44.5 million (€41.3 million) in 2016 from Kleiner Perkins and the investment fund of pharmaceutical company Merck.

    Philips and EDBI have signed a partnership to develop eHealth in Singapore

    A partnership between EDBI an Philips to support digital health companies

    In January 2016, Royal Philips (or Philips healthcare) and EDBI, the corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) have signed a MoU.

    The purpose of this partnership is to jointly invest in high-potential digital health companies that want to break into the Singapore market and, eventually, in the Asian market.

    In July 2016, the Dutch group said more to H&TI about the purpose of this huge project.

    • The main objective is “to build a robust digital health ecosystem that will serve the needs of a growing and aging population in Singapore and Asia,” a spokesman for Philips in ASEAN Pacific explained.
    • “Another key objective of this partnership is to fuel the growth of innovative digital health companies by enabling access to Philips experts, our ecosystem of healthcare solutions and our extensive global network.”

    EDBI and Philips are co-investing in promising digital health companies

    EDBI, the dedicated corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board, and Royal Philips announced on March 6, 2017 they are starting to co-invest in high-potential digital health companies.

    ConnexionsAsia (CXA), Asia’s employee benefits and wellness marketplace platform, is the first of these innovative eHealth companies to be supported by the partners.

    This project is in line with Singapore’s goal to strengthen its position as one of Asia’s leading digital health hubs.

    Philips launches Health Continuum Space to centralize health tech innovations

    Royal Philips (Philips healthcare) launched on January 19, 2017 the Health Continuum Space a first-of-its-kind innovation center in Singapore created to centralize high tech innovations in the healthcare sector in the city-state and, ultimately, co-create new healthcare facilities in order to better meet the future needs of the industry.

    The idea is to brings together different environments and medical scenarios, from the ambulance to the patient’s home. At the end of the day, the goal is to better meet the patients’ need, taking into account the important role played by the home environment, through the use of innovative solutions produced by Philips in the field of health tech.

    Partnerships between the public and the private sectors are growing

    Care Management: Deloitte and the Institute of Mental Health of SG will deploy a predictive system

    The Deloitte Future Healthcare Centre of Excellence, based in Singapore, has signed a partnership with the Institute of Mental Health of the city-state (IMH) to develop a predictive model in order to improve care management.

    This new system will especially help health professionals to guide the behavioral monitoring of outpatients to limit the common causes of missed appointments through targeted care interventions.

    Metabolic Diseases: J&J launched a competition in Singapore to find advanced solutions

    Johnson & Johnson Innovation recently launched in Singapore a global competition to identify high tech solutions to better treat metabolic diseases, such as diabetes and obesity.

    As part of this project, the US company – supplier of advanced products and services in the health care sector – has joined A*STAR’s ETPL, through its Diagnostics Development Hub, and Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART).

    The Singapore Quickfire Challenge – Metabolic Disease Innovation will run from 22 March to 17 May 2017. It aims to identify advanced solutions for the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic diseases that are reaching epidemic proportions in Asia-Pacific.

    Silver economy: Bayer & University of Singapore unite to promote adherence through eHealth

    Improve treatment adherence in the elderly with chronic diseases, such is the objective of the partnership announced late in December 2016 between Bayer and the entrepreneurial center of the National University of Singapore (NUS).

    They unveiled the first « Grants4Apps Singapore » crowdsourcing project that aims to develop technological solutions for innovative health in Singapore and throughout Asia-Pacific to improve adherence, one of the main challenges related to population ageing in the ASEAN region.

    IPAL-CNRS, a French-Singapore laboratory

    Initially, Image and Pervasive Access Laboratory (IPAL) is a research project initiated in 1998 by two researchers, one from Grenoble and the other one from the NUS. After a few years, the duo turned into a multidisciplinary team and from 2007, the organization became an international joint unit (UMI), an official laboratory of the CNRS.

    Mounir Mokhtari, IPAL director, and Fabien Clavier, project manager, talked to H&TI a few months ago about key solutions developed by the French-Singapore laboratory. They are currently working on two main projects : City4Age and Pulse, two programs focused on prevention through the integration of new technologies.

    « The goal is to develop research projects in Singapore in connection with what our teams perform in France to establish a win-win relationship between the two countries in the scientific field. The idea is to bring together people, practices and methods to facilitate discoveries, » summarized M. Mokhtari.

    SingHealth and Medtronic create a center of excellence for the treatment of diabetes

    SingHealth, one of the largest Singapore healthcare group, signed on 31 May 2016 a MoU with Medtronic, an Irish medical device company. The goal of this alliance is to develop a Center of Excellence on diabetes to advance treatment and care management in Southeast Asia, where the disease is progressing quite rapidly.

    « We believe this will set a strong precedent for industry to participate actively in co-creating new healthcare solutions which will benefit healthcare in Singapore and the region, » said Thien Kwee Eng, assistant managing director, EDB.

    Investments: Europe and the United States bet on the city-state

    Southeast Asia: Unitus Impact leads $6.3M round in promising eHealth startup mClinica

    In February 2017, Silicon Valley-based Unitus Impact has finished a US$6.3 million (€5.98M) Series A round financing in mClinica, a eHealth start-up based in Singapore.

    MClinica is growing in the health tech marketplace. The firm plans to use its new funds to expand its operations in Southeast Asia and even worldwide.

    Mobile app purpose: collecting relevant health data in Southeast Asia by connecting pharmacies on a single platform to help industry professionals and public sector players to better know the market.

    Galen Growth, a catalyst for the growth of Asia’s healthtech ecosystem

     In an interview published at the end of 2016, the international investor Julien de Salaberry, founder and CEO of The Propell Group, told H&TI more about this knowledge of the eHealth market. He talked about three important points:

    • 1. The development of Galen Growth Asia, a small company he recently cofounded in order to advance the discussions on health-tech sector across Asia;
    • 2. the characteristics of the investment in Asia;
    • 3. the complexity of establishing a sustainable business model.

    A one-stop shop for startups specializing in medical technology

    A one-stop shop for medical technology start-ups will be established soon in Singapore. No specific launch date has been provided so far.

    The aim of this creation is to fast-track the commercialization of innovative ideas, ranging from breakthrough diagnostic and surgical technology to cutting-edge connected devices. Unveiled at the end of June 2016, the project is a collaboration between Singapore incubation firm Clearbridge Accelerator and English product design and development company Cambridge Consultants.

  • Pancréas artificiel : Diabeloop et Cellnovo visent le marquage CE en 2018

    Diabeloop et Cellnovo ont annoncé le 20 avril 2017 le lancement d’une étude clinique dans l’optique d’obtenir le marquage CE en 2018 pour le système de pancréas artificiel de Diabeloop associé à la pompe à insuline Cellnovo.

    Cette étude sera menée auprès de 60 patients dans 12 centres, et comparera le produit Diabeloop-Cellnovo à d’autres pompes à insuline équipées d’un lecteur de glycémie en continu et d’un dispositif de suivi, dans des conditions de vie normales.

    Une première étude clinique réalisée auprès de 36 patients issus de 9 centres différents fin 2016 avait déjà permis d’obtenir des résultats positifs.

    Medtronic a de son côté obtenu l’agrément FDA pour son pancréas artificiel en septembre 2016. Il n’est toutefois pas encore commercialisé.

    Pancréas artificiel versus pancréas bio-artificiel

    Le « pancréas artificiel » développé par Diabeloop doit être distingué d’un pancréas bio-artificiel.

    • Diabeloop : association d’une pompe à insuline, d’un capteur et d’un smartphone, qui permet d’automatiser la distribution d’insuline ;
    • pancréas bio-artificiel : il consiste à encapsuler des cellules sécrétrices d’insuline entre des membranes semi-perméables qui sont imperméables au système de rejet mais perméables à l’oxygène, aux nutriments, au glucose et à l’insuline. Il repose sur une greffe.

  • 2025 World Expo: Japan’s bid is centered on eHealth and AI against Paris

    Osaka’s bid to host the 2025 World Exposition will be focused on the theme « Designing Future Society for Our Lives ». The city is expected to submit the bid application to the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) by April 24, 2017.

    According to the Japanese press, it will focus on technologies related to regenerative medicine and artificial intelligence (AI). The initial theme selected by Osaka was also centered on healthcare ( « Our Health Our Future ») but was too focused on population aging according to the organizing team.

    Japan has changed its Expo theme to compete Paris

    The central government has decided to support Osaka’s bid

    In early April, Osaka’s bid to host the 2025 World Exposition earned a stamp of approval from Prime Minister Shinzō Abe’s government.

    This decision is taken to enhance the chance to win the bid againt Paris, which is also a candidate to hold the exhibition, as well as questions about who would pay for needed infrastructure projects.

    Despite these concerns, the central government’s support has been expected. Shinzō Abe is indeed close to Osaka Governor, Ichiro Matsui, who heads the opposition party Nippon Ishin no Kai. And the two men share similar views on many political issues.

    The first Expo them on population aging has been dropped

    Osaka’s original Expo theme was « Our Health Our Future ». It was focused on new medical technologies, products and services needed to address the major healthcare industry and lifestyle concerns of aging societies, top topics in a country whose population is rapidly aging at the same time it is decreasing.

    According to one calculation by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, 30% of the Japanese population will be 65 years or older by 2025, up from 26.6% in 2015. By 2065, the national population, which reached over 127 million in 2015, would decrease to 88 million, with 38.4% over 65 years old.

    The technologies in the areas of e-health and AI are featured in the new project

    However, business leaders and the central government, led by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, finally decided to refocus Osaka’s bid on broader global concerns, worried about the project presented by Paris.

    The theme was changed to « Designing Future Society for Our Lives » and has been expanded.

    The concept now focus on address threats to future survival and ways to reduce diseases, pandemics, food shortages or natural disasters.

    The event would showcase technologies related to artificial intelligence (AI) and regenerative medicine.

    For its part, France has chosen the theme « At the heart of the territories opens that of men » (« Au cœur des territoires, s’ouvre celui des Hommes« ), which revolves around a global village based in Île-de-France and thematic forums in different cities, including one dedicated to health.

    Osaka’s bid: a project estimated at US$1.15 billion

    The BIE, made up of representatives from 168 countries, will select the host of the 2025 World Exposition by a vote at a general meeting in November 2018.

    If Osaka is chosen, it would be the sixth World Expo held in Japan (following the latest one held in Aichi Prefecture in 2005) and the second edition in Osaka. The 1970 Expo attracted about 64 million people, one of the most successful event ever in terms of attendance.

    This time, the exhibition would take place in Yumeshima, a man-made island in Osaka Bay, Kōtō district, from May to November 2025.

    The project cost will be split equally among the government, local municipalities and the private sector

    The total project cost to build the venue, currently estimated at around JPY125 billion (US$1.15 billion; €1 billion), will be split equally among the central government, local governments and the private sector, following a request of the central government. However, politicians and business leaders in Osaka are also requiring the government’s support for local transportation infrastructure projects needed for the event.

    Between 28 and 30 million visitors are expected to attend this major event held every five years, with an economic effect forecast to reach about JPY1.9 trillion (US$17 billion; €16 billion).

  • Southeast Asia: Unitus Impact leads $6.3M round in promising eHealth startup mClinica

    In February 2017, Silicon Valley-based Unitus Impact has finished a $6.3 million (€5.98M) Series A round financing in mClinica, a eHealth start-up based in Singapore.

    MClinica is growing in the health tech marketplace. The firm plans to use its new funds to expand its operations in Southeast Asia and even worldwide.

    Mobile app purpose: collecting relevant health data in Southeast Asia by connecting pharmacies on a single platform to help industry professionals and public sector players to better know the market.

    One of the largest series A financing for an eHealth Southeast Asian company

    The oversubscribed round lead by Unitus Impact is one of the largest Series A financing for a digital health firm in Southeast Asia.

    Other investors who joined the financing round include:

    • Global Innovation Fund (London);
    • MDI Ventures (Indonesia);
    • Endeavour Catalyst (US);

    Existing investors, 500 Startups (United States), IMJ Investment Partners (Singapore) and Kickstart Ventures (Philippines), also participated.

    MClinica: collecting pharmacy data on a single platform to better monitor market developments

    Founded in 2012 in Singapore, mClinica now connects thousands of pharmacies on common platforms through a mobile application.

    The three main « missions » of mClinica:

    • connecting pharmacies on a common platform;
    • providing quick and easy access to new data sources;
    • developing programs from the collection of this data to improve patient affordability and health outcomes.

    The first task of the application is to track what medicines are being prescribed, dispensed and bought in small pharmacies, whose activities are often unknown by other market players because there are usually isolated and unconnected.

    An application reserved for industry professionals and public players

    • The mClinica’s app is for pharmacy stores.

      The device provides them:

      • a loyalty program for their customers, enabling them to offer discounts (a big help in developing countries, where the poor have usually limited access to medicines), and so encourage them to share their data and to be enrolled into a program that helps them better understand their health conditions and reminds them to refill when they are running low on supply;
      • news from the industry;
      • other tools to better manage their business.
    • There is no consumer application.

    Customers simply provide their mobile phone number to the pharmacist to register and again at the counter for future purchases in order to claim loyalty points and discounts. Information about their purchases is collected by the pharmacy and send to the mClinica’s platform to get reimbursement by the drug companies.

    All data are « desensitized » to protect consumer privacy, the Singapore firm said.

    Once analyzed, the collected data is used to produce reports that can be sold to pharmaceutical companies, to devise programs to improve patients’ health while boosting their sales, but also to public sector players who want to follow the sector development in Southeast Asia.

    Making millions of health data accessible for a more transparent market

    « Trillions of dollars are spent by the public and private healthcare sectors and often there is no data to guide the right programming and policy decisions, said Farouk Meralli, founder and CEO of the Singapore startup. At mClinica, we are connecting once-fragmented pharmacies on a common platform providing a unified set of global health data that has never been available before. Our goal is to rapidly transform the availability and quality of global health data in a matter of months not decades. »

    Mr Meralli explains that the ASEAN region currently has no access to most of the health data available in the area because the market is dominated by small ‘mom and pop’ style stores (97% of all pharmacies in Indonesia, according to M . Meralli – source: TechCrunch):

    • Pharmaceutical companies want to know more about their business, supply chains, etc., in order to make more appropriate business decisions.
    • Governments and NGOs would like to access more relevant data in real time to be able to shape policy.
    • For consumers, this lack visibility affects the price of medicine, which are high and growing at a faster rate relative to their income. By sharing their data, the market would become more transparent and thus, pharmacies would be encouraged to offer more competitive prices.

    MClinica plans to expand rapidly in Southeast Asia and perhaps internationally

    The specific number of users of mClinica service has not been revealed by the company. Farouk Meralli simply said that his form has a potential reach of 70 million patients through the more than 5,000 pharmacies it works with.

    The startup plans to use its new funds to increase its reach by using offline communication methods (advertising on the street sales for example) associated with digital means, especially on social networks, to reach more pharmacies.

    Imminent launch in Malaysia and Thailand

    In addition to its headquarters in Singapore, the mClinica service is currently present in three major Southeast Asia markets: the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam. The company would like to expand to cover Malaysia and Thailand before the end of 2017. Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar are also on the list of countries where the startup intends to set up.

    Initially, mClinica was designed for massive markets, such as India and Brazil, but the Philippines was actually selected for a first pilot following a request from a prospective customer. Since then, the company has focused on Southeast Asia but it also considering an expansion of its activities in other parts of the world in the future.

    A « systems changing » company

    Since raising its seed round in 2014, the mobile application has continued to increase its network of pharmacies. The company has won international pitching competitions and has acquired in 2015 an equity stake in Medix, a Philippines healthcare and SaaS company.

    Unitus Impact managing partner Partner Beau Seil describe mClinica as a « system changing » company able to change the healthcareindustry in developing countries.

  • Singapore: EDBI and Philips are co-investing in promising digital health companies

    EDBI, the dedicated corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board, and Royal Philips announced on March 6, 2017 they are starting to co-invest in high-potential digital health companies.

    CXA, Asia’s employee benefits and wellness marketplace platform, is the first of these innovative eHealth companies to be supported by the partners.

    This project is in line with Singapore’s goal to strengthen its position as one of Asia’s leading digital health hubs.

    Helping CXA to monitor patients’ health in order to better prevent chronic diseases

    Founded in 2013, CXA has now grown into a $100-million company (€ 93,962).

    The startup, based in Singapore, develops digital health solutions which enable employers to better control healthcare costs. The group provides them with targeted personalized wellness intervention programs for employees.

    Results: employees’ health and therefore their productivity are improved, claims and insurance premiums are reduced, employers can make more efficient use of employee benefits dollars.

    With the support of both partners CXA will be able:

    • to access to health technological solutions developed by Philips and Dutch group’s business partners across the healthcare continuum, from prevention to diagnosis, treatment and home care.
    • to leverage Philips’ digital health platform to analyze data and integrate Philip’s health monitoring devices and services to track employees’ vital signs and provide them with targeted guidance by the use of clinical algorithms, to help them prevent and manage chronic diseases.

    « [CXA embodies] the leading innovation and ambition that we want to champion through this partnership with EDBI. We are now looking to accelerate and get more high-potential companies on board, to deliver better health outcomes in Singapore [and] support the Committee for Future Economy’s priorities for economic growth [but also] continuing on our Philips journey to achieve our ambition to improve the lives of three billion people a year by 2025, » said Caroline Clarke, chief executive officer, Philips ASEAN-Pacific.

    Philips and EDBI: an alliance to help the industry meet the pressing healthcare needs

    EDBI and Philips unveiled in 2016 the details of their joint investment partnership to stimulate the creation and commercialization of connected health solutions in the fast-growing Asian healthcare market.

    The purpose of the alliance is to help promising digital health companies to boost their technological capabilities to innovate, evolve and expand regionally and globally to help them meet the pressing healthcare needs for an aging Asian population.