This summary provided by SEAD Student Assistant Lizzy Knippler, Duke '16
Image credits: OneBreath and Design Directory
Vaatsalaya had many exciting highlights to share in their most recent newsletter, including their recognition by the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum:
"The Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF), is an autonomous, not for profit society that promotes and catalyzes Indo-US bilateral collaborations in science, technology, engineering and biomedical research through substantive interaction among government, academia and industry.
This year a joint proposal made by Vaatsalya and OneBreath for developing low cost ventilators to help save lives in resource poor setting has been chosen by IUSSTF as one of the awardees."
OneBreath ventilators cost 10% of the normal retail price of the medical device. The inventor, Matthew Callaghan, redesigned the standard ventilator machine so that it was both low-cost and suitable for a pandemic-like situation. The machine is portable, durable, and runs on battery, allowing it to be stockpiled in case of a pandemic. The ventilator can be used across patient requirements, as compared to the traditional ventilator where one machine is conventionally required per patient type.
"The Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF), is an autonomous, not for profit society that promotes and catalyzes Indo-US bilateral collaborations in science, technology, engineering and biomedical research through substantive interaction among government, academia and industry.
This year a joint proposal made by Vaatsalya and OneBreath for developing low cost ventilators to help save lives in resource poor setting has been chosen by IUSSTF as one of the awardees."
OneBreath ventilators cost 10% of the normal retail price of the medical device. The inventor, Matthew Callaghan, redesigned the standard ventilator machine so that it was both low-cost and suitable for a pandemic-like situation. The machine is portable, durable, and runs on battery, allowing it to be stockpiled in case of a pandemic. The ventilator can be used across patient requirements, as compared to the traditional ventilator where one machine is conventionally required per patient type.
Read more about the OneBreath project here
"For real scale to happen in the impact sectors, you need a lot of funds turning their attention to these sectors and that will happen when the business and the innovation is looked at from a commercial point of view," he says.
One sector that straddles both social and commercial well is healthcare. Whether it’s impact funds or traditional venture capitalists, there’s a growing interest in healthcare companies to address the abysmal gap in India’s healthcare infrastructure." -Esha Chhabra, Forbes contributor
Vaatsalya uses a for-profit model with an emphasis on affordability. It costs a little over $30 to deliver a newborn.
Image credit: Forbes
Forbes Magazine India recently ran a story on impact investing in India. They reference Vaatsalya's success as an example of "how commercial viability cross over into social good."
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