CardioCrown, Solution for stroke patients

Innovative digital health solutions to have better outcomes for stroke survivors

The need

The route to rehabilitation and recovery for stroke patients is complex. Medical intervention often includes a combination of physiotherapy, pain management, mental health support, cognitive, swallowing and speech therapy.  The aim is to try to heal the brain, or rewire its neural networks, so that they can function as before. For the clinicians and stroke units who manage a complex programme of rehabilitation, this can be extremely time consuming and ultimately costly. So, a medical technology capable of providing all the necessary therapies in one device could be a game-changer.

The solution

Brunel University London graduate Victor Harabari has applied his MSc in Biomedical, Bioelectronics and Biomechanics Engineering in the search for such a solution. A volunteer for the Stroke Association and passionate about improving the lives of stroke patients, Victor is founder and CEO of CardioCrown Ltd. The company has developed NeuroVive, a stroke rehabilitation platform involving VR that intends to act as a supplementary rehabilitation tool to current practice, to improve outcomes for individuals post stroke. The device aims to improve upper-limb function, track and progress therapy and encourage independent rehabilitation, all whilst still providing continued support from a therapist.

In 2022 CardioCrown was awarded an Innovate UK grant to develop the VR software that engages the patient in intensive, repetitive, and task-oriented exercises that promote neuroplasticity and accelerate recovery.

Further success would rely on finding collaborators, and on securing significant funding to continue the research into the use of virtual reality, robotics, and artificial intelligence technology. That’s where the RIEm Programme has had a significant impact on the company’s progress.

“I have taken part in a number of innovation accelerators and start-up schemes so I wasn’t really sure how much more RIEm would offer,” said Victor.

He describes how impressed he was by the way in which technical experts and Brunel academics went into great depth and detail as the programme unfolded. They navigated the delegates through the complexities of a research and innovation needs assessment, into strategy development for the innovation, and finally on to the creation of a proposal for funding – all tailored for each company.

Victor adds: “We learnt how to write a strong proposal for Innovate UK funding by analysing good and bad examples, and then preparing to pitch. Brunel managed to gather an impressive investor panel, including a representative of EIT Health the biggest community of academic, private, and public partners across the health innovation ecosystem in Europe, and we benefited from lots of informal networking with both academics and technical experts during our sessions on site.”

The outcome

As a direct result of involvement with RIEm, CardioCrown recently took the first three digital rehabilitation therapies into a usability study in partnership with Richmond and Hounslow NHS Trust, Hillingdon Hospital and Brunel University. The feedback from 19 stroke survivors and 21 therapists has been very effective in helping to refine the software. Academics from the university’s physiotherapy, design and biomedical sciences departments are now involved with the company and have worked with Victor on a joint project proposal submitted to Innovate UK.

The immediate focus is on securing more finance from investors who, like Victor, see the enormous potential to apply cutting-edge technology to patient-centred healthcare. The aim is to launch the product into the UK market in late 2023, and then go for the US and European markets on the back of UK user feedback and satisfaction.

CardioCrown has made the most of what the RIEm programme and Brunel University have to offer. This includes recruiting student interns into placements to give them the skills for their future employability. This way, both the company and university benefit.

Brunel University is delighted to work with Victor, our alumni, and CardioCrown to help the organisation to grow to the next stage and optimise the innovation with multi-level support from Brunel and access both public and private innovation funding,” says Dr Michael Joseph, RIEm Programme Lead.

“I can highly recommend the RIEm programme,” says Victor. “The team at Brunel is a valuable extension to my team in CardioCrown. Between us, we have the potential to transform the long-term outcomes for stroke survivors.”

Get in touch with the project team member(s) for this case study

Paratharayil

i have managed large partnerships for 15+ years in private sector, in over 25 countries including for a large consultancy group in senior management role. i have led capacity strengthening programmes in the uk and overseas on resource mobilisation and funding diversification. i have secured large funding and investment in health, education, research and innovation. i manage research and innovation and knowledge exchange partnerships with businesses and health sector actors in the field of health and med tech innovation. i conceptualised and lead brunel's award winning research, innovate and emerge (riem) programme to strengthen the capacity of businesses to optimise innovation and access funding to take the solution to the market. i am a member of brunel’s business innovation board and contribute to early career academic capacity development programmes and south asia regional working group in addition to innovation ecosystem management with businesses. i previously successfully led the delivery of brunel’s business resilience fund. i am a vice chair of uk public administration \association (ukapa). reuters named me as one of the top 10 influential international programme managers in 2010. i speak at national and international conferences on innovation funding systems. i completed my phd in public health and am a fellow of the higher education academy (uk). connect with me on linkedin

Dr Michael Paratharayil

Email Dr Michael Paratharayil Business Development Manager

I have managed large partnerships for 15+ years in private sector, in over 25 countries including for a large Consultancy Group in senior management role. I have led capacity strengthening programmes in the UK and overseas on resource mobilisation and funding diversification. I have secured large funding and investment in health, education, research and innovation. I manage research and innovation and knowledge exchange partnerships with businesses and health sector actors in the field of Health and Med Tech innovation. I conceptualised and lead Brunel's award winning Research, Innovate and Emerge (RIEm) Programme to strengthen the capacity of businesses to optimise innovation and access funding to take the solution to the market. I am a member of Brunel’s Business Innovation Board and contribute to Early Career Academic Capacity Development Programmes and South Asia Regional Working Group in addition to innovation ecosystem management with businesses. I previously successfully led the delivery of Brunel’s Business Resilience Fund. I am a Vice Chair of UK Public Administration \Association (UKAPA). Reuters named me as one of the top 10 influential international programme managers in 2010. I speak at national and international conferences on innovation funding systems. I completed my PhD in Public Health and am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK). Connect with me on LinkedIn

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Case study last modified 23/10/2023