We are thrilled to share the incredible journey of MEDHA 2024, a three-day Medical Device Hackathon held at Grant Government Medical College and Sir J.J. Hospital, Mumbai, in collaboration with BETIC Labs, IIT Bombay from 27th September to 29th September 2024. This year’s event brought together the brightest minds from the medical, engineering, and design industries, with the goal of solving unmet clinical needs through interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation. We are happy to share that we received an overwhelming response with 98 candidates from PAN India applying for the stage 1. It was tough for the selection team to filter out 32 participants from these 98 entries.
Day 1: Inauguration and Ideation
MEDHA 2024 kicked off with a grand inauguration ceremony, graced by esteemed dignitaries including Mr. Rajeev Nivatkar, Honorable Commissioner – MEDD, Dr. Ajay Chandanwale, Honorable Joint Director – DMER, and Dr. Pallavi Saple, Dean of Grant Government Medical College & Sir J.J. Group of Hospitals, Dr. Chikhalkar- Head of unit FMT Department and MEU Coordinator and other Departmental heads of Grant Government Medical College and Sir J.J Hospital. The inauguration set the tone for an exciting and challenging hackathon, where participants were introduced to the core mission of bridging the gap between clinical problems and technological solutions.
The first day also saw an ice-breaking session, allowing the participants to network and form multidisciplinary teams. Following this, the organizing committee presented 16 clinical problem statements which were collected and validated from the various departments of GGMC JJH, from which 8 key challenges were selected. Each team brainstormed and began the ideation process, with experts guiding them through various techniques to refine their ideas and form concrete solutions.
Day 2: Mentorship and Prototyping
Day 2 of MEDHA 2024 was all about deep dives into the problem statements. Participants had the unique opportunity to interact with healthcare professionals, gaining insights from doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff. These real-world perspectives helped teams to refine their problem statements and focus on practical, user-centric solutions.
Mentors from diverse fields, including medicine and engineering, provided invaluable support throughout the day. Teams worked tirelessly to turn their ideas into tangible prototypes, with constant feedback and iteration. The energy in the room was palpable as the teams prepared their deliverables, due by midnight, ready for Day 3’s final pitches.
Day 3: The Final Pitch and Conclusion
The culmination of MEDHA 2024 happened on 29th September 2024, where teams geared up for their final pitch presentations. Each team had 8 minutes to present their solutions to a distinguished panel of judges from medicine, engineering, design, and finance, followed by a Q&A session of 7 mins. This is the moment they’ve been working toward—transforming their ideas into real-world, implementable solutions.
Take a close look at their work:
Team 1: Laryngoscopes with Loose Contact in Critical Intubation: To build a reliable, consistent illumination solution is needed to improve patient safety.
Click here to view their work: https://desaishravani07.wixsite.com/my-site-2
Team 2: Needlestick Injuries and Improper Needle Disposal at Bedside : To build a safe, bedside disposal device to minimize injuries and improve safety in busy healthcare settings.
Click here to view their work: https://www.canva.com/design/DAGSDyXz744/P5BIRtu1CCb0Mq_smKCDqA/edit?utm_content=DAGSDyXz744&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton
Team 3: Monitoring of Intra-Abdominal Pressure (IAP) in ICU Patients : To build a non-invasive, continuous, and user-friendly device to ensure timely interventions and improve patient outcomes.
Click here to view their work: https://bhagyashreesamel35.wixsite.com/abdosense
Team 4: Ensuring Accurate Count of Surgical Absorbent Gauze in Abdominal Surgeries : To build A reliable system is required to automatically track gauze usage and prevent retained surgical items.
Click here to view their work: https://sites.google.com/view/surgisecure/insights
Team 5: Automated System for Total Parenteral Nutrition: To develop an automated system to calculate the nutritional and fluid requirements for critically ill/ post operative patients for Total Parenteral nutrition.
Click here to view their work: https://www.canva.com/design/DAGSEr41Chk/m53A8oaCyngEw3oFbR5vog/edit?utm_content=DAGSEr41Chk&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton
Team 6: System for Open Surgery Recording: To develop a system that can enhance surgical transparency, providing real-time documentation and improving post-operative analysis.
Click here to view their work: https://sites.google.com/view/eyespymedicalscom/home
Team 7: MRC Grading System to assess Muscle Strength: To develop an objective and reliable method to ensure accurate assessment and tracking of muscle function in clinical settings.
Click here to view their work: https://hkjkgfff.my.canva.site/objective-muscle-power-grading-and-mrc-conversion-a56-headset
Team 8: Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) systems with remote monitoring facilities for pregnant women with gestational diabetes: To develop a solution that has real-time, remote monitoring for better management and timely interventions, ensuring maternal and fetal health.
Click here to view their work: https://tinyurl.com/ae8rdtjv
Out of the 8 teams that participated, Team 5 emerged victorious, winning the 1st prize for their innovative solution, followed by Team 1. The problem statement that they worked on was to develop an automated system to calculate the nutritional and fluid requirements for critically ill/ post operative patients for Total Parenteral nutrition and nonreliable light source of laryngoscope respectively. Their project stood out for its practicality, creativity, and potential impact on addressing a critical healthcare need. We congratulate them for their hard work and dedication, and we look forward to seeing their solution make a difference in the healthcare industry.
We are immensely proud of the participants for their dedication and hard work. We would also like to thank our mentors, jury members, and problem statement providers for their time, expertise, and invaluable guidance.
As we wrap up MEDHA 2024, we look forward to seeing the long-term impact these innovative solutions will have on the healthcare industry. Stay tuned for more updates and success stories from the participants as they take their ideas forward into real-world applications.
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