Medical firm gets €1m in seed funding

A Galway-based company has got €1 million in seed funding to bring to market its wireless patient monitoring system.

Syncrophi said its Kews100 system will allow medical facilities to monitor a patient's vital signs without having to confine them to bed. "It's a tool in the hands of the nursing staff and clinicians," said founder David Toohey.

Vital signs such as heart rate, temperature, blood pressure, respiration and oxygen saturation can be used to detect potential relapses at an earlier stage, helping to safeguard patient health and also cut the cost of subsequent treatment.

The “early warning scorecard” protocols are considered best practice, and are being introduced nationwide in public and private hospitals. They are also in use in the UK.

The Kews100 system is updated every minute. “It’s an even earlier early warning scorecard,” said Mr Toohey.

The company, which was set up in 2008, said the Kews100 system can feed into this protocol, allowing greater flexibility of patient management and cutting the costs associated with fixed bedside monitoring. The cost savings and the support given to staff by the system could prove a bonus.

The funding came from Enterprise Equity Venture Capital, which co-manages the AIB Seed Capital Fund, the Western Investment Fund, Enterprise Ireland and the Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme.