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NetHub: improving healthcare through the digital transformation!

Split Tech City

Split Tech City

20.02.2022.

As the first Croatian business accelerator that focuses on the development of healthcare technology, the NetHub is of utmost importance for the national tech and startup ecosystem. This particular accelerator offers systematic support to startups through its own structured mentoring program, masterclass lectures, networking, coworking space, products and ideas presentation opportunities, as well as access to pre-seed funding, seed funding, investors, as well as sectoral and niche experts.

We caught up with the NetHub team to get a deeper insight into their work, starting from the very beginning – the founding of NetHub: “While provided consulting services to various stakeholders of the Croatian healthcare system, the founder E.C.H.R. Ltd, has gained valuable experience and insight into this system situation, problems, possibilities, and potentials.

One of the main challenges noted is the wide and deep gap between the dynamic ICT sector and outdated healthcare providing models.

This obvious need on the one side and resolving opportunities on the other initiate the NetHub launch with the primary task to enable and establish appropriate cooperation between healthcare providers and tech sector.“

The NetHub team puts the work emphasis on the programming and projecting a strong network of public and private healthcare providers with the technology sector entrepreneurs: “We believe that close cooperation between two sectors will greatly contribute to better accessibility and personalization of healthcare based on innovative technological solutions.”

At the moment, NetHub is in the phase of entrepreneurial accelerator program development. In the meantime, the vast majority of the City of Split area public and private health and social care providers, as well as ICT entrepreneurs have participated in NetHub’s recently conducted preliminary training and consultations.

The aforementioned activities generated mentors’ interest, as well.

Naturally, we were curious about the current plans the NetHub team has: “We have dedicated the current year to the development of the entrepreneurial accelerator program within the Development of the entrepreneurial accelerator for healthcare technologies project.

In parallel, we work on several activities aimed at advocating the need to connect health and technology sectors, participating in various initiatives such as the implementation of student entrepreneurship internships in health technologies, modernization of higher education programs through the development of courses and summer schools in digital health and pilot projects in the field of digital health for health and social care providers.

Overall, our main plans are aimed at supporting existing entrepreneurs in the field of healthcare technologies, but also at encouraging other stakeholders to do business in this promising sector.

By the end of next year, we want to implement the first Croatian acceleration program in the field of health technologies, with a top mentoring package and secured access to finance.”

As an accelerator that operates within our startup ecosystem, we wanted to hear some firsthand insight into any possible struggles they might have faced, but also the positive examples from our ecosystem.

The NetHub team had some valuable insight to share: “As usual, in the beginning, it is most difficult to secure sources of favorable funding for the establishment and launch of planned activities. We have successfully obtained the EU funds within the Operational Program Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014-2020.

We are very satisfied with the results achieved so far, but to further improve our operations, we need to insist solely on the set business plans.

When it comes to established institutional or expert collaborations, we work with most regional stakeholders in the digital health innovation value chain, such as research organizations, universities, entrepreneurial support institutions, health and social care providers, and entrepreneurs in the health and tech sectors.

As for the ecosystem at large, there are many commendable and promising initiatives in the Split area, including ICT County, the Student Business Incubator operating at the Faculty of Economics in Split, the SPINIT Incubator, and the Technology Transfer Office at the University of Split, as well as Split Tech City.

One thing all these promising initiatives should strive for is more structured cooperation for the betterment of Split’s tech ecosystem at large.”

And there you have it! You’ve just met another ecosystem builder of Split’s (and Croatia’s) tech community. We’d like to thank the NetHub team for their time and wish them great success with all their work!

Photos by: NetHub

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Split Tech City

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