UConn’s InnovateHealth PitchFest brought innovation and creativity to the forefront as students pitched groundbreaking solutions to today’s health care challenges. From novel technologies to patient-centered solutions, undergraduate and graduate teams showcased their ingenuity before a panel of expert judges, underscoring the university’s commitment to fostering interdisciplinary innovation in health care.

InnovateHealth PitchFest was organized by the UConn Nursing and Engineering Innovation Center and sponsored by Beekley Medical. Winning student teams were awarded a total of $17,000 in prize money and prototyping support for their pitched health care innovations.   

Both graduate and undergraduate students were invited to present at the Nov. 20 event. 

“Innovation is a science. Consistent with other sciences there are theories and methodologies that guide the practice,” says Dr. Tiffany Kelley, who is an associate professor in residence in the School of Nursing, director of the healthcare innovation online graduate certificate program, and a Nursing and Engineering Innovation Center co-director. “A critical aspect of learning innovation is application. InnovateHealth PitchFest offers another opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students to explore and develop their ideas for problems we are faced with in health care today.” 

Judges included Wendy Garvin Mayo, founder of Collaborative Cancer Care; Gena Costello, a head nurse in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit; Mike McGuire, a strategic growth and innovations director at Beekley Medical; and Joseph Luciani, a design and manufacturing instructor at the UConn College of Engineering Innovation Shop. 

Judges scored the students on the scope of the problem; innovativeness of the solution; market potential and commercial opportunity; impact; and pitch delivery. 

“The InnovateHealth PitchFest offers an opportunity for students with ideas to explore them and begin the process of innovation development with mentored guidance and funding to begin the prototyping process,” says Kelley. “I am confident that when an innovative mindset is cultivated, every nurse and nursing student will identify an opportunity to innovate in health care. Then, it is up to that individual to decide which idea to explore at that moment in time.”

“The Nursing and Engineering Innovation Center is one of the only Centers within the country that brings the two disciplines of Nursing and Engineering together,” says Dr. Leila Daneshmandi, assistant professor in residence of innovation and entrepreneurship, director of the Entrepreneurship Hub, and co-director of the Nursing and Engineering Innovation Center. “We’re excited to partner with Beekley Medical to create a program exclusive to health care innovations that offers funding, prototyping resources, and expert mentorship. We’re ready to help these students bring their innovations to life.” 

Before the event began, Leila Daneshmandi congratulated the students on advancing their “pitching” skills. 

“This will likely be the first time many of you have pitched outside of the classroom,” said Daneshmandi, “Channel all the effort that has occurred up to this moment and remember to take a moment to enjoy it.” 

In the undergraduate category, ChromaShield placed first, Flexapy placed second, and TransferAble placed third. 

In the graduate category, Zemi placed first, Dentopa placed second, and HealthStream AI placed third. PillGuard and Healing Power of Movement also competed. 

“We will have more opportunities throughout the year. We’re already thinking about future programming for Spring 2025 and subsequent years,” says Daneshmandi. 

All teams were gifted five hours of expert mentorship at the Innovation Shop. Located in the Castleman Building, students and Innovation Shop employees work in the space on a product development path, moving from ideation, prototyping, to finally creation. 

“Please think of us as a resource,” Luciani said. “We offer a holistic approach to innovative engineering. If you are lacking in prototyping, we can help. If you need advanced manufacturing tools to perfect your prototype, we can help.” 

McGuire said of the recent pitch presentations he has heard, the students did remarkably well. 

“All of you looked in different areas of health care and figured out what was lacking,” McGuire said. “But despite your immense successes here tonight, please don’t be afraid to fail. Failure is a given sometimes in development.” 

Review photos taken during the event. 

About Beekley Medical: Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Bristol, Beekley is committed to investing in the research and development of simple, low cost, disposable products that help medical imaging, surgical, and radiation oncology professionals improve communication, productivity, and patient care. Beekley Medical has a long and successful history of partnering with inventors and entrepreneurs to bring new products to market. 

About the UConn Nursing and Engineering Innovation Center: The purpose of the center is to foster and advance health care, workforce, and economic development through interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships between nursing and engineering to promote the ideation, creation, and commercialization of new evidence-based health care technologies that address clinical unmet needs for the betterment of health care quality (e.g., safe, effective, efficient, equitable, timely, and patient-centered). The center will advance health care innovation for the state and nation through four core areas of focus: research, education, community engagement, and technology transfer.