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Injury Repair Recovery Program trainees on top three surgical innovation teams in 2020

Apr. 24, 2020

Source: RI-MUHC. Making surgical treatments and procedures more effective is the common goal of the Injury Repair Recovery (IRR) Program at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC). Researchers in this program have a proven track record of translating research into innovative products through start-ups, spin-offs and partnerships with external companies.

Their research trainees also boost the innovative and entrepreneurial nature of the IRR Program, especially those who participate in the NSERC-funded Surgical Innovation Program, known as CREATE - Innovation at the Cutting Edge. The CREATE training program brings together business, software, clinical and engineering students from three universities in Montreal. Their mission is to find an unmet clinical need, develop a novel technology and form a start-up.

Surgical Innovation Program students at work on product concept prototyping, business plan development and pitching skills
Surgical Innovation Program students at work on product concept prototyping, business plan development and pitching skills

The innovation teams must build a prototype, establish and validate the value proposition, then pitch their prototype and business model before a panel of judges composed of Montreal entrepreneurs and business experts. This year, IRR Program trainees were on all three winning teams.

NURA Medical, the team that placed first in 2020, created a start-up that improves patient care and clinical efficiency by revolutionizing the way bolus IV medication is prepared and administered in hospitals. The team is a finalist in the McGill Dobson Cup start-up competition and will soon begin the acceleration program at Centech MTL. Sofia Addab, Jean-Gabriel Lacombe and Georgia Powell represented the IRR Program on this team. Their interuniversity teammates were Nicolas Minvielle, Naghmeh Ansari and Catherine Pepe.

NURA Medical, the winning Surgical Innovation team in 2020, from left to right, seated: Jean-Gabriel Lacombe (McGill/RI-MUHC), Catherine Pepe (Concordia); standing: Sofia Addab (McGill/RI-MUHC), Georgia Powell (McGill/RI-MUHC), Nicolas Minvielle (École de technologie supérieure), Naghmeh Ansari (Concordia)
NURA Medical, the winning Surgical Innovation team in 2020, from left to right, seated: Jean-Gabriel Lacombe (McGill/RI-MUHC), Catherine Pepe (Concordia); standing: Sofia Addab (McGill/RI-MUHC), Georgia Powell (McGill/RI-MUHC), Nicolas Minvielle (École de technologie supérieure), Naghmeh Ansari (Concordia)

Two teams, Gynaware and GyroClear, tied for second place. GynAware aims to improve quality of life for women with uterine fibroids by offering an integrated and cost-effective biopsy solution. This solution will enable gynaecologists to streamline decisions based on presurgical diagnosis, thereby also reducing patients’ anxiety. GynAware qualified for the Dobson Cup finals and will soon begin the District 3 Innovation Centre Acceleration Program. Arghavan Rastinford, a trainee in the IRR program, is a member of this team, along with Ida Derish, Javier Fernandez Cruz, Meera Kanagalingham, Haoran Wang and Pegah Yaftian.

GyroClear aims to set a new standard for minimally invasive intra-abdominal and thoracic surgery. This team designed a protective sleeve that maintains a clear camera lens throughout procedures. Kenny Drummond, a trainee in the IRR Program, is a team member, with Aiden Reich, Pierre Paul Gallant, Ayman Shams, Sarder Kayyan and Shwajan Paul.

Congratulations to all the innovators!

Read more on LinkedIn
District 3 Innovation Centre Acceleration Program
Clinical Innovation Class of 2020!

About the Surgical Innovation Program
The Surgical Innovation Program is a cross-disciplinary graduate program that equips trainees to enter the clinical technology sector. Delivered jointly by McGill University, École de technologie supérieure, and the John Molson School of Business and Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering at Concordia University, the program offers training in surgical innovation, combining expertise in business, engineering, computer science and surgery. Trainees work in cross-disciplinary teams to learn about the innovation process for new surgical devices. Teaching is delivered by engineers, clinicians, industry experts, entrepreneurs, attorneys and business faculty.