This challenge is a business idea competiton with an aim to promote innovation in the field of hospital patient care. The goal of this challenge is to accelerate innovative projects and their commercialization.

The jury is composed of :

David Deperthes, Consultant en entrepreneuriat, Président du jury

Pierre-Luc Maillefer, Ingénieur en dispositifs médicaux

Michèle Joanisse, Directrice de la Fondation CHUV

Pietro Scalfaro, Médecin pédiatre, Co-fondateur biotech

Gaetan Cherix, directeur de la HEI-HES-SOValais

Catherine Djaouti, Infirmière et COO de La-Solution.ch

Thierry Vial, Rédacteur en Chef PME, partenaire media 2025

5 projects will be selected for the acceleration.

This ‘Challenge’ has a total value of CHF 75,000, distributed as follows:

• CHF 5,000: Awarded to a maximum of 5 finalists during Phase 1.
• CHF 25,000: Granted to the winning project in Phase 2.

The remaining amount will be invested in-kind to support the development of the finalist projects.

Our partner Media PME will feature a double-page spread on the winning project in the December 2025 issue of the magazine.

The Challenge will also receive social media coverage and will be mentioned in the news of Republic of Innovation, the leading Life Science blog in the Health Valley and of Debiopharm website.

The project should be innovative, feasible, preferably linked with Academia and/or the Industry, and have an impact on the end-user and have a potential socioeconomic impact.

All projects are analyzed on the aspects of :

• Impact on the end user
• Economical benefits
• Innovation of the Project
• Relevance of the application

April 30, 2025: Project submission deadline
May 2025: Announcement of the winning projects
Autumn 2025: Final pitch and Award ceremony

The projects should be submitted by 30th April 2025 end of day.

Fondation Inartis has a network of more than 2000 professionals and offers support for entrepreneurs in coaching, licensing, hosting and access to investors. The winning projects will be able to profit from this infrastructure in order to accelerate their product development.

Yes, Fondation Inartis provides such services as the access to the investors and have a number of venture capitalists in its network.

Currently no business idea competition addresses the patient care area. Additionally the Challenge aims to answer this issue with new solutions from a broad range of people, not with existing start-ups.

The quality of patient care in Switzerland is extremely high, however being in a hospital for a long time can be psychologically challenging and potentially even cause depression. Activities oriented to entertain and stimulate the patients can have q high impact on the recovery rate. Thus, our Challenge aims to improve the overall quality of patients care, and make the time in the hospital more pleasant for them to achieve a better and faster recovery.

The most likely outcome is the development of new technologies and activities improving the patient’s stay in the hospital.

We are accepting applications of young professionals and encourage students and employees of Universities and Research Centers in Switzerland to submit their ideas and projects to the Challenge.

An award honors the past and recognizes achievements that have already become a reality. While there are already many awards, this challenge is forward-looking. It offers anyone with an idea the opportunity to receive the resources and guidance needed to turn their concept into a prototype. This is a crucial step in building confidence in the value of their idea and, potentially, a springboard to transform it into a product or service that benefits patients.

Fondation Inartis is in a close contact and collaboration with multiple cantonal governmental organizations that support entrepreneurship. In case of interest they can support the promising projects.

Debiopharm, La Solution.ch, and Inartis Foundation are organizing this challenge because these three partners are deeply engaged in the healthcare sector and share a common commitment to placing the patient at the heart of their efforts. This alignment of values ensures that their initiatives are focused on addressing real-world patient needs and advancing innovative solutions to improve health and well-being.