Preparation

To sharpen the challenge, a preparatory process was launched in April 2019 in cooperation with Addestino Innovation Management.

In a first phase, several working sessions identified the desired functionalities and user needs for the mobile treatment unit. On 18 September 2019, we organised a market consultation with some 20 companies and knowledge institutions from home and abroad.  The conclusion of the market consultation was that the project is innovative from the user point of view but also from the implementation point of view. Discussions with the European experts from industry and knowledge institutions present showed that today, many technological solutions already exist to enable mobile stroke treatment. The main challenge in implementation comes not so much from a purely technological angle, but rather from a Belgian regulatory angle and more specifically, the regulations in force for homologation and conformity in radioprotecting mobile stroke treatment units.

UZ Leuven will initiate exploratory talks with the relevant authorities in the government to gain more insight into the exact legal requirements and to estimate what scope for innovative solutions the regulations may offer. In a next step, an innovative government tender for the validation and procurement of the mobile unit will be prepared.

The introduction, the 'use cases' discussed and the report of the market consultation are added to documents at the bottom of the page.