EMVision Medical Devices (ASX: EMV) has secured a significant boost in its mission to transform stroke care, with the Australian Government awarding the company $3 million in non-dilutive funding under the Cooperative Research Centres Projects (CRC-P) Round 17 grant program.
The grant will fund the first clinical study of EMVision’s emu point-of-care brain scanner, a device designed to bring advanced imaging out of major hospitals and into the hands of frontline clinicians, especially in communities where access to critical stroke care is limited.
Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability in Australia, and the burden falls hardest on regional, rural, and Indigenous communities. These populations often face long travel times to tertiary hospitals and limited availability of specialists such as neurologists, radiographers, and radiologists. These are delays that can mean the difference between recovery and lifelong disability.
The CRC-P-funded study will be conducted in regional hospitals across South Australia. EMVision’s emu scanners will be deployed alongside Titan’s Zeus telehealth network and dedicated stroke nurses, allowing rapid brain imaging to be transmitted directly to expert neurologists in tertiary centres for immediate clinical decision-making.
This will be the first clinical study to demonstrate the benefit of the emu scanner in real-world hospital use, with the goal of proving a replicable stroke care workflow that can be deployed nationwide. The study will also generate health economic data, which is evidence to support adoption by hospitals and health networks.
EMVision’s CEO, Scott Kirkland, said the grant is central to the company’s strategy:
“We’re thrilled to have secured this grant to support regional clinical studies with our emu point-of-care brain scanner. Generating high-quality clinical evidence is at the core of our commercial strategy, and this funding enables us to place emu directly into regional Australia, particularly in settings where timely stroke diagnosis and access to a neurologist are most limited.”
The company said it also plans to seek Australian regulatory clearance by leveraging prior FDA clearance of the device. The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) allows abridged reviews for devices already cleared by the FDA, paving the way for an accelerated market launch once EMVision’s pivotal diagnostic performance trial is complete.
Australian Stroke Alliance co-chair Professor Geoffrey Donnan said, “The awarding of this grant reflects the strength of the partnership between the Australian Stroke Alliance, Titan, and EMVision in bringing cutting-edge brain imaging technology to the patient. This will ultimately allow for earlier treatment of stroke wherever the patient is located, and significant improvement in patient outcomes.”