A team of UC students that has won several awards for their stroke-detection device, Ischiban, are in the hunt for bigger awards and more recognition.
The team includes biomedical and computer engineers and an industrial designer: Pooja Kadambi, Joe Lovelace, Scott Robinson and Alex Androski. They developed the device, comprised of an elastic headband connected to an electronic diagnostic device, which can quickly determine the type of stroke a patient is suffering from. This allows for quick diagnosis and faster treatment for better recovery rates, according to the developers.
Currently, such stoke differentiation is done by a CT scan, which is costly and time-consuming. Ischiban can be used by EMTs at a patient's home or during an ambulance ride. Early detection is important because patients whose stoke is caused by a blood clot who are treated within three hours of symptoms are significantly more likely to survive and recover.
Most recently, the team took first place at the Oregon New Venture Championship, which included a $3,000 prize. Teams are judged on their ideas, business plans and pitches, as well as how quickly they can adjust to feedback from various judges, says Charles H. Matthews, executive director of UC’s Center for Entrepreneurship Education and Research, professor of management and a team adviser.
“The NVC is one of the best, but also one of the toughest competitions,” Matthews says. “Everyone was talking about their innovative approach to early stroke detection.”
The other prizes the team have won for their device include first place at the Innov8 Health Idea Expo at GE Aviation Learning Centre and runner-up in the Spirit of Enterprise Competition. After winning the Oregon competition, the group is on its way to the Venture Labs Investment Competition in Texas, May 3-6, which only allows 40 teams from around the world to compete.
Prizes include $135,000 in seed funding, feedback from investors and faculty and an opportunity to gain interest about their product or business. The competition is designed to mimic the real world process of garnering venture capital.
By Evan Wallis & Feoshia Henderson
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