“The impact that health is having on tech has never been so great,” NDRC venture leader Dr Helen McBreen said, adding that healthcare is being revolutionised by cutting-edge technologies.

Dr McBreen who is leading the NDRC’s FutureHealth pre-accelerator said there is a shift to looking at prevention as well as cures.

She said the 10 start-up teams involved in the pre-accelerator cover the healthcare spectrum, from prevention and diagnosis to treatment and support. “They have the potential to change billions of lives globally and allow patients to become CEOs of their own healthcare. If these were all in the marketplace now, it would be a very different sector.”

Dr McBreen said it is the first time the NDRC has done a sector-specific pre-accelerator in the area of health. “Some $4 billion was pumped into digital health by investors in 2014. This sends out very strong signals.”

An infrared thermometer that provides continuous monitoring of temperature without the need for direct contact, a pathogen-detection biosensor that can create real-time disease and health surveillance maps, and a support platform to enable healthcare professionals prescribe lifestyle interventions to patients, are among the 10 ideas selected for the NDRC’s FutureHealth pre-accelerator.

Disease maps

Charles Nwankire

is developing a diagnostic tool with an embedded telecommunications system for data transmission to the cloud, acquiring big data that can create real-time disease and health surveillance maps.

Conor Harkin's start-up team is focused on developing a smart thermometer – SmartTherm – to provide continuous temperature monitoring. Avril Copeland of TickerFit wants "to make it as easy for health professionals to prescribe lifestyle interventions as it is to prescribe medication".

The 10 start-ups partake in a programme culminating in a presentation to business leaders in March.