Parkview Health partners with Irish companies on health care innovation | Health & Science

An Irish manufacturer of technology to detect brain abnormalities in newborns is opening its first U.S. office on the Parkview Regional Medical Center campus, officials announced on Monday.

NeuroBell, of Cork, Ireland, will work out of the Parkview Mirro Center for Research and Innovation as it launches its neonatal electroencephalogram, or EEG, monitoring technology in the American health care market, according to a news release.

According to data supplied by NeuroBell, 140 million babies are born each year worldwide, including 2 million who suffer brain injury during or after birth. Half of those newborns experience seizures. Nearly two-thirds of seizures are silent.

NeuroBell developed a portable, wireless device that monitors electronic impulses from an infant’s brain in real time to detect problems in activity by using state-of-the-art electronics, artificial intelligence and signal processing, officials said. Alerts and EEG recordings can be monitored by staff, allowing them to intervene faster when seizures are detected.

Representatives of 15 Irish medical technology companies visited Fort Wayne last month before attending an industry conference in Chicago. They pitched products and services to Parkview leaders of various service lines, including cardiology, neurology, cancer, infectious diseases, and women’s and children’s health.

Parkview and NeuroBell officials also met with Irish Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to celebrate their collaboration.

Enterprise Ireland, an arm of the Irish government, arranged the visit as part of its participation in the annual AIMS Summit, which was held in March. The transatlantic forum brings together physicians, entrepreneurs and industry leaders involved in health care innovation. Parkview Health was selected as one of three hosts for Enterprise Ireland’s visit.

Over the past five years, Parkview has collaborated with several Irish start-ups and developed a strong partnership with Enterprise Ireland, the release said. Enterprise Ireland provides funding and support to help start-ups expand into the global marketplace.

Rich Church, Parkview’s chief growth and strategy officer, said officials look forward to building on the partnership.

“This week has been a testament to the strength and potential of our long-term partnership with Enterprise Ireland,” he said in a statement. “The synergy between Parkview and NeuroBell, along with the collaborative spirit fostered by our relationship with other (Enterprise Ireland) clients, has been truly inspiring.”

In the fall of 2022, NeuroBell won the Healthy Mom and Baby Innovation Competition 3.0, sponsored by Parkview and MATTER, a collaborative of 700-plus current and alumni start-ups from around the world, working with dozens of hospitals and health systems, universities and industry-leading companies to advance health care.

The competition challenged participants to improve access to care for underrepresented mothers and children, including solutions related to areas such as mental health, management of chronic conditions, substance abuse and preventive care.

As the winner, NeuroBell earned the opportunity to begin collaborating on a pilot program with Parkview.

Since then, the medical technology company has worked with Parkview’s clinical research team to develop protocols for a study being launched this spring.

Ethel Massing, director of Innovation and Parkview Strategic Enterprises, said the organizations’ partnership is expected to expand over time.

“NeuroBell will be using that office as they continue to work with our clinical staff and research team on their study and move toward FDA approval,” she said in a statement.

“We are also discussing additional projects and development we can do together, such as use of the device in our rural hospitals to help prevent the need to transport infants to (Parkview Regional Medical Center) for EEG testing.”

Representatives of area economic development entities – including Greater Fort Wayne Inc., the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership, BioCrossroads, Plug & Play, Orthoworx, Elevate Ventures and the Indiana Economic Development Corp. – also were able to connect with the Irish companies during their visit, including at an evening reception with the Enterprise Ireland delegation.

Ireland is the world’s No. 1 investor in the U.S. on a per capita basis, according to Enterprise Ireland. And the U.S. is the second largest country export market for Enterprise Ireland-backed companies.