<p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;"><strong>Victoria’s status as a global leader in medical technology is set to grow with the establishment of an Australian-first hub for skills and device development.</strong></p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;">The new Victorian Medtech Skills and Device Hub is bringing together local businesses, universities and education providers to accelerate the state’s medtech sector and deliver the workforce of the future, with support from the Victorian Government.</p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;">The hub, led by the University of Melbourne in collaboration with RMIT University, Swinburne University of Technology and the Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery, will offer more than 1,000 industry-guided training places and deliver up to a dozen investment-ready startups every year at full capacity.</p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;">It will also support leading local companies, including Neo-Bionica and Synchron, to expand onshore manufacturing of their medtech products and become significant players in the US$547 billion global market.</p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;">The hub will be located at the Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery at Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital, Australia’s first hospital-based research centre, which is under construction and set for completion in 2024.</p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;">Medtech is one of the fastest growing sectors in Victoria’s economy, with 650 medtech related companies employing approximately 6,000 people and generating $1.4 billion in value.</p> <p style="caret-color: #343641; color: #343641; font-family: VIC-Regular, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 0.98em;"><a style="background: none; color: #004c97;" href="https://vicmedtechhub.com.au/">Learn more about the new Victorian Medtech Skills and Device Hub</a>.</span></p>
Victoria can expect more innovative digital health and better care for patients thanks to a new innovation centre that will fast-track the solutions of our state’s top healthtech companies, right from the centre of Melbourne. The new Victorian Connected Health Innovation and Commercialisation Centre was opened at the Melbourne CBD offices of digital health commercialisation company ANDHealth on 5 April, thanks to a $2.4 million investment from the Victorian Government. The new centre will help innovative healthtech companies to connect with the investors and manufacturers they need to take their products global. Local companies like Macuject will work out of the new centre, so they can access increased opportunities for their software that improves the clinical treatment of blindness. Atmo Biosciences will also use the facility for its ingestible Atmo Gas Capsule which detects gases from known locations in the human gut and wirelessly transmits data to help medical professionals better diagnose functional gastrointestinal disorders. The centre will also offer skills training, concierge services to connect businesses with investors, community networks to test digital health solutions, and an international expert in residence program. For more information on the Victoria’s health innovations and initiatives visit Innovation Victoria. Originally published by the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions on 6 April 2023
"Melbourne proved to be the perfect launching pad for an innovative health model like ours." Esme Naidoo, General Manager, XRHealth XRHealth, a health technology company and the global leader in extended reality telehealth platform development, has collaborated with Invest Victoria to establish its Asia Pacific headquarters and fulfilment centre in Melbourne. The Story Founded in Israel in 2016, XRHealth expanded into the US, setting up a global headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts whilst retaining its research and development centre in Tel-Aviv, Israel. XRhealth is the first FDA and TGA registered virtual reality (VR) medical device company and is the only VR health provider working in the telehealth space across physio, rehab, pain, cognitive and mental health care streams. Using proprietary VR and augmented reality (AR) technology originating from flight simulation technology, XRHealth’s offers a cutting-edge telehealth and remote monitoring service. The service collects and analyses data through artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing algorithms to allows clinicians to develop unique treatment plans and monitor patient progress, delivering a unique, remote healthcare model. XRHealth VR Telehealth and Remote Monitoring Service After starting up in Israel and successfully expanding into the USA, the company wanted to grow in the APAC region and began searching for the right geo-strategy and industry and government partners. Once XRHealth decided to enter the Australian market, they needed to find a location from which to base themselves. They wanted to establish an entirely new model and scale locally, which required highly skilled staff that they could train to deliver the virtual sessions. They also needed to educate local consumers on the benefits of their new model. Invest Victoria was involved early in XRHealth’s Australian market entry journey, consulting on their strategic decision to base themselves in Melbourne and scale their service nationwide. Hear from Esme Naidoo on their investment journey - click to play video Esme Naidoo, General Manager XRHealth said “fundamental to Melbourne’s appeal was its world class heath care system, large diverse population and its high consumer take up rate of technology.” Melbourne has a unique community of global health professionals that XRHealth could take advantage of. The city features one of the world’s leading biomedical precincts, delivering outstanding patient care, cutting edge research, discoveries and training to some of the country’s brightest minds. A powerful acceleration of XRHealth’s launch came in the form of a partnership with Bupa, Australia’s largest health insurer, that offered customers the opportunity to participate in a trial of the company’s technology for physiotherapy services. The success of the trial, which included unique data driven feedback received by clinicians during sessions to measure treatment outcomes, convinced Bupa to extend their partnership with XRHealth, further developing their local network. The scaling of their local customer base from Melbourne, has prepared XRHealth for a bright future in Australia. How we helped Invest Victoria assisted XRHealth at the inception stage of the project, providing information on the local property market and connecting them with high-level clinicians, capable of taking on the therapeutic and technological aspects of the model. XRHealth consulted extensively Invest Victoria in the set up and launch of their Melbourne base. Looking to the future With Australia’s healthcare sector set to triple over the next decade, XRHealth’s investment in its Melbourne base and operations sets them up for growth, not only in the local market but for the entire APAC region. Originally published by Invest VictoriaFind our more about investment opportunities in Digital Health.