PITTSBURGH, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- ClearCount Medical Solutions, a Pittsburgh-based company, has been selected to receive $299,970 in pre-seed funding from the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse (PLSG), the Idea Foundry, and Innovation Works. The funding, which consists of $99,970 from the PLSG, $100,000 from the Idea Foundry, and $100,000 from Innovation Works, will support product development efforts for ClearCount's next generation prototype.
Steve Fleck, co-founder of ClearCount, acknowledged this honor, "It's truly exciting to see the three major economic development organizations in Pittsburgh come together to invest in the commercialization of a technology that will improve patient safety in millions of surgeries each year."
ClearCount has a patented process and technology to tackle the current cumbersome method of tracking surgical sponges and instruments throughout a surgical procedure. At present, perioperative nurses spend 30-45 minutes manually counting surgical sponges and instruments before, during and after each typical surgery. When manual counts do not match up, hospitals are forced to X-ray the patient, leading to more than a million X-rays annually. Even with this last line of defense, thousands of cases of retained foreign bodies still occur.
ClearCount's technology improves patient safety, staff safety, increases productivity and reduces costs. "We provide a simple and intuitive system using radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to provide instantaneous counts. Our hand-held wand can precisely scan the body for retained objects, thus performing the function of an x-ray far quicker, cheaper and with fewer health risks," said Gautam Gandhi, Co-founder of ClearCount. Fleck added, "Ideally, we will eliminate the need for nurses to manually need to dig through the kick-bucket counting soiled sponges at the end of a procedure."
The PLSG is providing its investment in ClearCount through its Technology Development Fund (TDF), which helps very early stage company-based projects that require key proof of concept or feasibility studies to allow attraction of angel, pre-seed or other investment funds.
"ClearCount demonstrated that its solution improves productivity and quality through instantaneous, accurate results for healthcare providers," said Doros Platika, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of the PLSG. "In the end, the ClearCount approach will increase patient safety and reduce medical staff exposure to biohazardous materials, and our region may see the benefit through good job creation. This is truly a win-win proposition."
"The ClearCount team has done a remarkable job taking a product idea from a concept to a real business opportunity. Idea Foundry looks forward to helping guide the team along with our partners through their next critical phase of product development," said Patrick Stewart, President of Idea Foundry.
"Conducting research and hospital trials and going through the regulatory approval process is a long and complex journey for any medical devices company," said Florri Mendelson, President and CEO of Innovation Works. "To get any of these companies off the ground, especially one with first-time entrepreneurs such as with ClearCount, it is helpful to have as many financial and other resources to draw upon as possible. The combined resources of Innovation Works, the PLSG and Idea Foundry will give this emerging company a faster start and a deeper pool of expertise to speed the first phases of development."
About the PLSG
The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse is a public/private partnership, founded by the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, UPMC Health System, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and its regional foundation community. Together with private industry and advanced research and healthcare capabilities of our institutional partners, PLSG invests in and supports the growth of regional life sciences companies in the areas of: bioinformatics; bionanotechnology; diagnostics; medical devices; medical robotics; therapeutics; and tools and services.
About Idea Foundry
Idea Foundry, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3), was founded in 2002 to fill Southwestern Pennsylvania's major business gap between innovative "ideas" and sustainable technology start-up businesses, in turn creating jobs. Idea Foundry bridges the significant gap between idea generation and a fundable start-up by providing the intellectual and financial capital necessary to support innovators. Idea Foundry is a collective of private foundations, government entities and universities.
About Innovation Works
Innovation Works is a state-sponsored organization working to seed technology companies in Southwestern Pennsylvania and grow them to the point of being self-sustaining. Innovation Works provides risk capital, business expertise, and other resources to high-potential companies with the greatest likelihood for regional economic impact. The combination of Innovation Work's early-stage investments and the hands-on guidance of an experienced business team helps companies commercialize their innovative technologies, gain critical early customers, develop strategies to maximize their competitive edge, and form relationships with other investors and advisors who can help these companies attract additional capital and grow.
Pittsburgh Life Sciences GreenhouseCONTACT: Gautam Gandhi of ClearCount Medical Solutions, +1-617-501-8797,or Gautam@ClearCountMed.Com ; or Tim O'Brien of O'Brien Communications,+1-412-854-8845; or Lynn Banaszak of Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse,+1-412-770-1353; or Terri Glueck of Innovation Works, +1-412-681-1520 x435