About the Author

Dr. Alessio Degl’ Innocenti is an Associate Professor in Psychology and Head of Department at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden. He is associated with the Gothia Forum for clinical research. He graduated with a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Gothenburg in 1998, with a thesis on memory functioning in aging and depression.

H.E. Klas Molin has been serving as the Ambassador of Sweden to India since 2017. Prior to this, he served as the Ambassador and Chief of Protocol at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm, Sweden.

He also held various positions at Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm. He earned his Masters of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (USA).

Q. What is the Swedish interest in India and your priority topics for the Indian health sector?

We have a very fruitful bilateral collaboration with India in the health sector, beginning with our development cooperation in areas such as mother- and child health, midwifery, and work against communicable diseases. Cooperation has now increased to mutually beneficial partnerships. For the past ten years, we have had a Memorandum of Understanding on Health between our countries and next year we are going to celebrate this with an India-Swedish Health Year.

Many collaborations of mutual interests are ongoing and being planned that focus in a wide range of areas like antimicrobial resistance, elderly care, pharmaceuticals, non-communicable diseases and digital innovations including artificial intelligence, where the emphasis will be on knowledge transfer, capacity building and skills training.

InnoBRIDGE Sweden 2019 : Report

Q. An MoU was signed during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Sweden on 17th April 2018 at Stockholm on “India-Sweden Innovation Partnership for a Sustainable Future”. Can you share the progress with respect to healthcare?

We are in the process of putting out calls and setting up incubators which will encourage close collaboration between the innovators in Sweden and India. Solutions are only sustainable if both sides contribute and share a strong sense of ownership. Progress has already been made in laying the groundwork for such partnerships within the sectors of clean energy and smart cities, and we hope to launch initiatives targeted to healthcare during the coming year. The Embassy will be sure to keep you posted.

InnovatioCuris signed MoU with Swecare

Q. India and Sweden will complete 10 years of Partnership in Health Sector in 2019, any plans in store for 2019?

India and Sweden plan to commemorate the ten years completion of the MoU in 2019. We hope to enhance our collaborations in new areas with new stakeholders like the new AIIMS that have come up in some states. We also hope to have high-level visits from both sides to enhance policy dialogues and bilateral relations. Some of the collaborative partners are also developing new plans to strengthen their cooperation.

Q. What can Indian healthcare businesses gain from Swedish healthcare businesses?

Any suggestions on possible partnerships? It is not so much what the Indian healthcare system can gain, but rather, how can we join forces to overcome common challenges. Swedish businesses have been in India for many years. Within healthcare, we have AstraZeneca, who recently celebrated 40 years in India, and Getinge who has been investing in the Indian ecosystem for many years. Their focus, like many others, has been in building the capacity of their employees and the users of their products to increase efficiency. The businesses also bring with them lessons from Sweden so that we can help India leapfrog outdated technology. Sweden also ranks high in most innovation indexes – it can be argued that our relatively small size makes collaborations outside traditional silos necessary in order to succeed. Public actors, private companies, and institutions often work together in finding innovative solutions to serious healthcare challenges. We would like to work with India to build spaces for similar ecosystems across India.

Q. What are the common areas for healthcare research and ongoing partnerships for both sides to collaborate?

Under the MoU, there are extensive collaborations between public authorities and universities from both countries. For instance, the Swedish Public Health Agency, Medical Product Agency and Forte (the Swedish Research Council on Health, Working Life and Welfare) have an ongoing collaboration with their Indian counterparts. There are ongoing discussions on extending collaborations with new players like our National Board of Health and Welfare and E-Health Authority as well as between our medical universities such as Karolinska Institute, Uppsala University and the different AIIMS.

Through these collaborations, we hope to demonstrate best practices and technologies. We have research calls in different areas for example with EU in big data and artificial intelligence for monitoring health status and quality of life after cancer treatment, under JPIAMR call on diagnostics and surveillance 2019.

Innovation-the UNNATI way is an India-Sweden Innovators for strategic business development to address global challenges. It is an industry-supported initiative coordinated by Business Sweden in collaboration with AGNIi-Invest India and ATAL Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog.

Q. You have signed for skilling nurses on infection control, wound care and diagnostics with Govt of Maharashtra in 2016. What is your experience of the last two years?

I believe the overall experience has been good. Business Sweden will, however, be able to provide more information on this as they have been coordinating this activity.

Q. Anti-Microbial Resistance is an important issue right now. How do you propose the Swedish Govt. support in this area?

The Swedish Public Health Agency and the Indian National Centre for Disease Control have an ongoing collaboration with a focus on antimicrobial resistance. Additionally, the Indian Ministry of Health has proposed that Sweden collaborate closely with a new-AIIMS and its associated Health and Wellness Centres. AIIMS-Jodhpur has been suggested to us and we are currently considering the scope of such collaboration.

Q. Artificial Intelligence seems to be a focus area for Sweden in the Health Sector?

Do you see any collaboration in this field with Indian providers? This is a hot topic all over the world right now. I know India is well ahead in AI technology while Sweden has more long-term experience in extracting relevant information from vast amounts of data. Our patient registries have enabled us to have one of the highest cancer survival rates in the world and that is only one example. I believe we will see some collaborations in the coming year, especially as you are arranging a delegation to Sweden addressing this exact topic in May next year. I will follow this progress closely.

Q. What is your message for InnoHEALTH Magazine readers? How can we, as a platform, support India-Swedish collaboration?

I congratulate InnovatioCuris for collaborating with Swecare Foundation and Swedish Medtech in facilitating innovative and promising solutions for India. Sweden has a long tradition of developing innovations in healthcare. We also have a well-functioning public sector, together with extensive health data registries, biobanks and digital connectivity infrastructure, that provides great opportunities to develop innovative, demand-driven, competitive solutions for healthcare. Exciting opportunities abound in an environment dedicated to medical innovation, drug discovery and pharmaceutical commercialization. Sweden and India have lots to share and learn from each other!

Exclusive interview of Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda

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Prof. Paul Lillrank (moderator) presented his keynote by giving insights of his ideas and implementations in the organization for which he is the chairman (Aalto Health Platform). Explained how the world famous, ARAVIND EYE CARE model was chosen and implemented by his student in Finland who studied ARVIND EYE CARE in Tamil Nadu. Stressed on technology circulation instead of technology transfer, as the later is only one directional flow. He felt India is the most innovative place in the world with the land full of opportunities.

Molshree Pandey, currently working on communicable diseases and finding ways to collaborate stakeholders in a much more efficient way. Conducts and concentrate on boot camps, road shows in Denmark, presentations to many companies; connecting and opening pathway to better delivery of care in India as well as Denmark. Insisted on modification of products according to the country.

Ankit Bahl compared the way of delivering care and implementing in 2 countries Estonia of 1.2 million populations with India of 1.2 billion populations. Estonian healthcare developments:

-Have S.E.Z for Pharmaceuticals, diagnostic companies in Estonia
-Worlds first biobank which Is commercialized too!
-97% of their patient prescriptions are made online for better access for both patients as well as stakeholder handling it.

Only three things can’t be made online in Estonia 1.marriage 2. Divorce 3. Trade property. Haha!! Introduced E ambulance in Estonia! They call E-Estonia and are also working towards to achieve it!

Iris Ohrn, A kind of matchmaker and identifies companies, investors which would benefit mutually. She observed similar challenges in India as well as Sweden in terms of the cost of healthcare.

K Gopalan, Works for the betterment of healthcare ecosystem of underprivileged. India is a big corridor for the scope of solutions. The focus needs to be on Primary health care, an example is vatsalya which is trying to provide subsidized private care. Promoted SANKALP, which is a form of the network of healthcare stakeholders.

Identification of right partners and right market recognition is required. IPR (very important) during technology transfer is at-most concerned.

As GDPR in EU, likewise, we need in India too. Shared her views on DISHA Act
DISHA:
– Setting up central and state organizations
– Ensuring trust in the system
– Recognition of ‘RIGHT TO RECTIFY’ by the patients is becoming important
Differences in DISHA and GDPR should be studied,
Example: right to forget/Erase isn’t there in DISHA

(Hony) Brigadier Dr Arvind Lal with his keynote address described that only 10% of overall healthcare constituents diagnosis.He discussed the emerging trends in Diagnostics by putting forward four questions

• What is happening in healthcare?
• How will that affect us as pathologists?
• What are the emerging technologies?
• What can you do to better prepare yourself?

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Many trends relate to technological advances & the necessity to increase quality & efficiency. The new factor for the IVD industry, not previously seen, is the influence of educated & informed healthcare consumers. Clinical lab testing is one of the greatest bargains in healthcare but often draws the attention from cost-cutters. Lab professionals also will increasingly capitalize on these emerging opportunities & options.

The whole paradigm of healthcare is shifting and will continue to shift—from technological advances like electronic health records. This will change the historic doctor/patient relationship marking the onset of an era of patient empowerment in which the patient shall become more responsible for maintaining good health.

The Healthcare sector, in India, is at an inflection point and is poised for rapid growth At a CAGR of 21% – we will have an industry of 300 billion US $ by 2020. A combination of demographic and economic factors is expected to drive the growth of the sector.

The main points addressed the need to use the emerging trends in diagnostics such as

• Wellness Health Model – the power of diagnostics to change the focus of healthcare from treating sickness to promoting wellness
• The rise of the corporation – Consolidation & Automation
• Role of PPP in Rural Healthcare – a private-private partnership
• Need for Accreditation – Quality of samples and testing
• Consumer-centric healthcare – Handheld devices and POC (Point of Care) testing
• Growing in Digitisation

Dr. Ravi Gaur wanted the healthcare facilities available in metro cities should reach the remote areas too, that’s where innovations in diagnosis should take us. Dr. Vidur Mahajan’s company validates clinical test with their expertise and team of researches.

“Simple solutions for complex problems” is the lateral thinking behind Pawan Asalapuram who is currently working on eradication of TB in the country by his innovations in diagnosis methods. Use of his product, PCR, TB can be recognized in just 90 mins which usually takes 3 to 6 months.

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Dr. Richa Dayal suggested continuous monitoring devices. She then spoke on the data analysis part, where the study shows that India is researching on the data outsourced instead of self-published data as we lack in data. She demanded the support of policymakers in the area of diagnostics.

Mr. Anoop Shaji, final year undergraduate student He has delivered dozens of award-winning scientific presentations at various international, national scientific meets on his original novel, indigenously developed, potentially promising conceptual models. Anoop Shaji was the only dental student selected among 160 students all over India from all UG streams to be invited as a delegate to first ever Nobel prize series in connection to vibrant Gujarat 2017, which was presided by 9 Nobel laureates and the prime minister of India for conceptually developing a potential breakthrough for brain cancer treatment.

He became the voice of the young innovators in the conference and emphasized on POC (point of care) diagnosis. His current work is on a simple device detection of cancer with just one single drop of blood. Lab on the chip would be a boon in advancements in diagnostics and insisted on continuous efforts on it along with the financial and legal support.

In Mumbai, durability of the bulb emerged as the highest priority while making purchase decision for light bulbs, with almost 47% of adults choosing it over other factors like price and eye comfort. While 49% of adults in the city agree that light quality affects eyesight, only 21% will opt for lighting that is comfortable for their eyes. The study conducted amongst 9,000 adults across twelve countries including India, also revealed uncomfortably entrenched mindsets with about half of the Indian population compromising on their eyesight by prioritising price (50%) and durability (48%) of bulbs over eye comfort, while making purchase decisions for light bulbs.

The situation is quite alarming considering the invasion of digital technology in our lives translating into longer screen exposure times, with almost 70% of Indians surveyed spending more than 6 hours a day in front of a screen and a similar number complaining of eyestrain! This also comes at a time as myopia hits record levels globally, with the World Health Organization predicting that one in two people will be short sighted by 2050, a vision emergency of sorts, in the not too distant future!

Ophthalmologists understand the gravity of the situation and are pulling out all stops to sensitise the general population to step up on their eye care quotient. They highlight a continued need to educate the public about eye care. In response to this situation the All India Ophthalmological Society has developed a number of proactive community oriented programs, guidelines and resources to enhance ophthalmic education amongst the public. The study of over 9,000 adults across twelve countries – India, China, USA, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Indonesia, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Thailand and Turkey – becomes even more relevant given the dire situation. It was commissioned to explore how quality LED lighting can help ameliorate the eye comfort problem amongst consumers. As per the findings of the study, 44% of Indians don’t visit an eye specialist on a regular basis while about three fourths on an average use weight (73%) and fitness (60%) as overall indicators of health. Clearly, eye care does not rank at par with other perceived health metrics. Quality lighting is not only related to longevity, but is also incredibly important when it comes to ensuring our eyes aren’t strained and feel comfortable. people should choose high quality lamps that are comfortable for their eyes.

PHILIPS LIGHTING RESEARCH

• While 49% adults in Mumbai agree that light quality affects their eye sight, only one in five (21%) will opt for lighting that is comfortable for their eyes

• Almost half of adults in Mumbai consider durability (47%) and price (45%) of bulbs over comfort for their eyes, while making purchase decisions

• More than half (53%) of adults in the city don’t regularly get their eyes checked; eye care does not rank at par with other perceived health metrics such as managing weight, fitness levels and skin care

Want to write for InnoHEALTH? send us your article at  magazine@innovatiocuris.com

Read all the issues of InnoHEALTH magazine:
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 1 (July to September 2016) – https://goo.gl/iWAwN2 
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 2 (October to December 2016) – https://goo.gl/4GGMJz 
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 1 (January to March 2017) – https://goo.gl/DEyKnw 
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 2 (April to June 2017) – https://goo.gl/Nv3eev
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 3 (July to September 2017) – https://goo.gl/MCVjd6
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 4 (October to December 2017) – http://amzn.to/2B2UMLw
InnoHEALTH Volume 3 Issue 1 (January to March 2018) – https://goo.gl/fksdQx

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Last year May 24-26, 2017 was big startup event Latitude 59 in Tallinn,Estonia. I attended the event and got a flavor of the startup scene and healthcare sector discussions were held. I aligned my visit to Estonia along with the visit of my meeting with CBHEALTHACCESS delegates, innovative healthcare companies from Finland, Sweden, Estonia and Latvia.

I could witness many startups and meet some friends. At any point in the premises of the conference there were over 1000 people and all engaged about future trends and opportunities. One way to know future is always by observing what problems best startups are engaged in solving. I could witness many biotech (genetics) based startup trying their hands on personalized medicine and new age diagnostics platform. Also, interesting was the cyber security companies.

One cyber security startup from Switzerland, OneVisage, that attracted my attention was working on 3D face scanning as authentication mechanism and looked promising for applications like online banking with your own face as your password. Estonia in general has made great advances in two areas, one that of e-governance including e-health and the other cyber security. Hence, it was no surprise for me to see both kind of startups flocking in conference and building upon the existing good work happening in that country. The other exciting thing to see was the countries collaborating and there were many international visitors including from India. Japanese and Finnish presence was quite visible.

There was also heavy promotion of e-residency program with some exciting announcements about easier account opening with a Finnish provider. It lured me also to try my hands on registering a company and post conference it took me only few minutes with the help of some local friends to register a company! Although, I am yet to make it fully functional, but that was already something for me.

The highlight for me was the healthcare session on the second day, which had a keynote by Nicky Hekster from IBM Watson. Nicky started by asking everyone in the room to standup and asked first those who have been to a hospital in last six months to sit down or someone in their close family. Next, he asked if they knew someone in friends/relatives who have been to the hospital. To my surprise there were only 2-3 people standing in the room  which had over hundreds of people. This was a master tactic to drive the point home, that healthcare matters to all.

Followed by the keynote was a panel discussion, which comprised of panelists from USA, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Estonia. They were healthcare practitioners, investors, incubators, startups and large company representatives. The session was interesting and demonstrated that how international best practices sharing and collaboration is need of the hour cutting across all type of stakeholders. I really enjoyed my two days not just in the conference but also in after parties with loads of intellectual discussions. Look forward being there again next year!

Want to write for InnoHEALTH? send us your article at  magazine@innovatiocuris.com

Read all the issues of InnoHEALTH magazine:
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 1 (July to September 2016) – https://goo.gl/iWAwN2 
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 2 (October to December 2016) – https://goo.gl/4GGMJz 
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 2 (April to June 2017) – https://goo.gl/Nv3eev
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 4 (October to December 2017) – http://amzn.to/2B2UMLw

Connect with InnovatioCuris on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/innovatiocuris
Twitter: https://twitter.com/innovatiocuris
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7043791
Stay updated about IC, visit: www.innovatiocuris.com