3D Printing Wins Health IT Hackathon
By Megan Williams, contributing writer
Philadelphia’s health innovation community gathered together last month for Independence Blue Cross’ free Health Hack hosted in conjunction with Jefferson Health System. The hackathon was designed to tackle healthcare access and delivery through innovative solutions and address the most pressing issues in the industry. It attracted designers, programmers, nurses, professionals, engineers and students to attend skill-based workshops, connect with mentors, and engage in hands-on experiences with tools. Sponsors of the event included Comcast, IBM Microsoft, and DroneCast.
According to IBX.com the event featured three tracks:
- wearables: helping patients and providers gain a better understanding of individual health
- drone-based healthcare delivery
- improving patient experience: reducing hospital readmissions
The Results
The winner turned out to be 24-year old Sean Walker with a 3D printer-created leg prosthesis.
Walker was perhaps as surprised as anyone else that he won the competition since he overslept both days, presented his idea of customizable prostheses for active amputees wearing an old t-shirt, and gave his presentation without a PowerPoint or a business model.
According to Technical.ly, the logistics of his prototype are comparable to that of a car in that it incorporates a frame, suspension, interior, and tires. The suspension allows for adjustment for conditions and giving support. The frame serves at the prosthetic socket to which all the adjustments attach.
The most important component of the prosthetic though, is the feed. According to Walker, “You can break down the foot into individual components that can be adjusted and modified ... The whole encompassing idea is to break it down into easily made parts, with one socket, so you don’t have to worry about carrying around 15 legs ... It’s all 3D-printing plastic ... Nothing strong or fancy.”
Walker received $5,000, access to Microsoft business software, mentors and entrepreneurs, a spot at The Center for Healthcare Innovation at Independence Blue Cross incubator, and a three-month expert membership to Makerspace NextFab in Philadelphia.