11/1/2022
Innovating in healthcare
How can we improve healthcare in Amsterdam? Fourteen teams addressed this question during Hacking Health Amsterdam 2021. The winners are now exploring how they can further develop their solutions, and they are not doing it alone. Our own experiment designer, Mirte Vendel, is guiding them in this process.
Hi Mirte!!! Tell me, what exactly does such a hackathon look like?
'It starts with the problems healthcare workers encounter on a day to day basis. They explain those problems in a video. All these videos appear on the Hacking Health Amsterdam website.
Then, people who have an affinity for a problem can sign up with a team. This can truly be anyone, from a programmer to a designer.
After this, you work together for three days to come up with a solution. And at the end of the third day, you present the idea to a jury that chooses the winners.'
And who are the winners?
'Three teams won. The first is 'Art for Heart,' which focuses on the situation young people in Amsterdam Southeast are in because of corona. Through street art combined with QR codes, they want to give these young people good education.
Another team is concerned with safe changing of clothes. Indeed, for infectious diseases, such as corona, healthcare personnel need protective clothing. After each visit, such a suit must be safely removed because of the risk of self-contamination. That's a cumbersome, time-consuming procedure. This team wants to make that easier.
And then there is 'Jasper wacht, Jasper lacht'. There is now a 10-month wait for youth care. That's obviously way too long. 'Jasper wacht, Jasper lacht' looks to see if a child can receive the care and attention they require during the waiting period regardless.
All sound like great ideas. How do you mentor those teams?
'We're all working towards January 13th. That's when there will be a follow-up, and a jury will select which team wins the Development Prize. It's 2,500 euros with which they can truly kickstart their idea. So, right now, we're perfecting the pitch. What steps do we need to take to achieve the goal? Where should our focus be? And what does the business case look like?
Experiment design, in other words. And that's where I come in. Pretty exciting, because the jury mainly judges teams on the steps they have made.
Is there much to be done?
'Every group requires different attention. For instance, 'Jasper wacht, Jasper lacht' is a lengthy process involving various steps and numerous stakeholders. Therefore, we are breaking it down into smaller pieces. Where should you start? What is the riskiest assumption? And what do you need to validate to know if you can continue?
"Art for Heart’ is a different story, it's quite manageable. We're already looking more into implementation: Who do we need to talk to? What still needs to be validated? What will it cost? Who does what? And how are we really going to make this happen in the short term?'
Do you have a favorite?
'Haha, no way. They are all super passionate people. And they are all working on a relevant problem, each for a different target group. Whoever wins, that money will end up well.'
Many eyes have been on healthcare over the past two years. How do you create more innovation in that sector?
'Especially in healthcare, you have to rely on people with their own experiences. They know which problems are at hand, but often cannot solve them themselves.'
So it's important to connect those people with parties that can. And then to convince them why they should. Using the Business Impact Model, for example.'
What is your link with innovating in healthcare?
"Before working at Makerlab, I was co-owner of a startup. Our goal was to improve diagnostics for parasitic diseases in Africa. Malaria, for example.
Healthcare is a complex industry, which is what makes it so fascinating. You want to do something good, make people better. But someone also has to pay for it. The business model has to be right. That contradiction makes it very interesting.'
Sounds good! So how did you end up at MakerLab?
'Well, I was involved in everything and learned a lot there, especially in the field of experiment design, because as a startup, you're mainly testing things at the beginning. But once you've tested everything and the puzzle fits, you move on to the next phase: execution.
My role changed more to that of a manager. And that's not exactly where my passion lies. I missed the validation, the creative phase. So I switched to MakerLab. Here I can continue to do that in the long run. And the great thing here is that I can work on a wide variety of projects. Exactly what I like.
What would be your dream job at MakerLab?
'Something in international healthcare. For example, setting up a social enterprise in such a way that it also has a good revenue model. And preferably in a developing country.
In the Netherlands there is also much room for improvement, of course. That was proven again during the hackathon. So until that international dream job drops at MakerLab, I can still do plenty here.'
Want to learn more about innovation in healthcare? Or could you use a hand yourself? Then get in touch with us.