On June 11th, hundreds of people headed to Mintz in Boston’s Financial District for our 5th Annual Point of Care Showcase & Pitch Event (CAPCaT). This event was nothing short of successful. We had 4 point-of-care innovators pitch their devices, a fireside chat that sparked meaningful conversation, and numerous opportunities to network.

During opening remarks, David McManus, Chair of Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School and UMass Memorial Health System, and Jeanne LeClair, acting CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, both commented on how the innovations created are not only helping patients in the Commonwealth, but also creating a positive impact on global healthcare. The speakers highlighted how continued investments in capital equipment and incubator and accelerator spaces are making Massachusetts “one giant incubator” where startups can advance their groundbreaking innovations and truly make a difference.

Listening in on how to “Become Investor-Ready” fireside chat.

The fireside chat “Becoming Investor Ready” dove into how you can become an effective founder, strategies for creating a durable competitive advantage, and providing a service not just a solution, when it comes to creating a startup.

We heard from Anthony Aiudi from Morningside, Hirak Parikh from Johnson & Johnson Innovation, and Paul Rabinovich at Lexington Medical, Inc and founder of NOTA Laboratories. Dr. Margaret Koziel with Boston Pharmaceuticals facilitated the fireside chat and raised important discussion topics.

They discussed what early investors need to ask themselves, especially when there is a lot of unknown. The panelists all emphasized:

• The importance of having a founder and strong team that wants to learn
• Using money and time in the most efficient way possible
• Keeping patient-wellbeing in mind while balancing the need to expedite product delivery.

Four innovators pitched their groundbreaking point of care technologies.

Leaders from Daxor, Huckleberry Labs, RizLab Health, and WellLinks pitched their innovations at the 5th CAPCaT Showcase.

CEO & President of Daxor, Michael Feldschuh, pitched the point-of-care heart failure diagnostic that allows the amount of fluid to be measured in blood vessels. This allows for precise diuretic medicine dosing to be given to patients, creating a more accurate treatment.

Sr. Data Scientist, John Tan, PhD from Huckleberry Labs introduced the AI-generated mobile app that is built to track sleep cycles for babies, with the goal of improving sleep and overall mental health for parents.

RizLab Health Founder & CEO Mehdi J. pitched the company’s technology, the CytoTracker, a device capable of quantifying and analyzing white blood cells in just minutes.

Wellinks President & Chief Commerical Officer Geoff Matous offered insight on the company’s virtual COPD management solution, aiming to allow people to live fully and breathe freely by providing improvements.

Closing the event with an informational session on NIH resources.

Our night ended with an info session from  the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Lead of Innovator Support Services in their Innovation & Commercialization Office, Julia Berzhanskaya. Julia provided key information on the resources the NIH offers. She discussed the benefits of the SBIR/STTR programs, career-changing funding opportunities, and the mission and objectives of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The NHLBI accelerates the translation of discoveries and innovations into new biomedical products that service the heart, blood, and lungs, and sleep diseases and disorders.

The NIH-funded UMass CAPCaT program provides startups access to important funding opportunities and resources that help advance their technologies.

Thank you to all who joined us for this year’s event. Please join us in congratulating the startups who presented their innovations, giving us a glimpse into the future of digital health! We hope to see you at an upcoming event soon.