Digital health start-ups with monitoring and data collection technologies that might address Australia’s alarming rate of stillbirth are invited to apply for a supported accelerator program offered by the Stillbirth Foundation Australia (SFA), PwC Health Consulting and PwC Open Innovation.
The SFA says that about one in every 135 babies born in Australia is a stillbirth, making it the most common form of child mortality in the country – and the rate of stillbirth has largely remained unchanged since 1991.
Research shows that reduced foetal movement can be a predictor of stillbirth and accurate monitoring can effectively predict a risk and a need for medical intervention in the pregnancy. This project aims to develop mechanism for objective measurement of foetal movement, providing guidance to mothers and clinicians about movement patterns, connects mothers to clinicians and other mothers and gathers data to enhance our understanding of the causes of stillbirth.
The successful applicants will be supported by the Stillbirth Foundation Australia, PwC Health Consulting and PwC Open Innovation teams through a 12-week project accelerator. During this period, successful applicant/s will be provided with access to subject matter experts in stillbirth, obstetrics, biomedical engineering, digital start-ups and the health and life sciences sectors. The accelerator will also provide the successful applicant/s with access to potential customers for the solution such as mothers, expectant parents and health service payers and providers.
After the accelerator is complete, successful applicant/s may have an opportunity to take their solution forward as a joint venture with the Foundation and other contributors and the Foundation has pledged $20,000 in support.
Applications close 3 February 2017 and more information can be found online.