Last week, UM’s Knowledge Transfer Office organised an in-person event hosted by ASTP -Europe’s premier association of knowledge transfer professionals - focused on Digital Innovations in Healthcare. The international digital symposium explored the complexities of digital developments and the impact of ongoing work in the healthcare industry.
Whilst the symposium was held online and saw various members of different entities and backgrounds share their views and expertise in their related area, the Knowledge Transfer Office entertained a large group of attendees in the Serracino Inglott Hall who watched the broadcast live. The local attendees also came from a variety of backgrounds; ranging from industry to academia, and saw people coming from both healthcare and AI-based backgrounds.
We also provided catering and drinks for the five hour event, encouraging attendees to network and socialise in the brief breaks between speakers. The event was kicked off with an address made by our manager, Andras Havasi, and the Pro-Rector for Research and Knowledge Transfer, Prof. Ing. Simon Fabri.
The first speaker, Dipak Kalra, the President of The EU Institute for Innovation through Health Data, began the series of talks by emphasising on the importance of health data in driving digital innovation, and gave insight into how new and advancing technologies are increasingly affecting the healthcare industry.
Following a short break, Laura Spinardi (Head of TTO, Fondazione IRCCS) and Malcolm Bain (Founding Partner of Across Legal) offered insight into the challenges that may arise when tackling licensing, GDPR, and patient data. Data access and management is an important facet of the technology transfer process, and when dealing with sensitive information like patient data, firm restrictions must be applied.
After another short break, we delved into the possible pitfalls when working with regulations referring to AI applications and medical devices. Heleen Rienstra, an advisor on Medical Device Regulation at UMC Utrecht and Coenraad Davidsdochter, a Senior Consultant on Software and AI at Qserve, explained more in detail about their side of the digital innovation process.
The symposium ended with a panel discussion between the speakers and hosts, after which we invited our guests to enjoy some food, local craft beer, and wine following the event.
Whether focusing on industry or academia, regulation or innovation, the symposium offered insight into a myriad of areas and helped broaden the understanding of licensing and regulatory issues when working with data and technology in healthcare.
