Female founders driving change in women’s healthcare

10 groundbreaking health innovations, led by female entrepreneurs, have the potential to transform the lives of women and girls across the North of England and beyond.

As gender-based health inequalities in the region persist, a new wave of innovators is developing cutting-edge solutions to improve diagnostics, treatment, and health education for women.

From AI-driven diagnostic tools to virtual reality therapies, these innovations have the potential to address major gaps in women’s healthcare—gaps that have too often been overlooked.

With support from Health Innovation North East North Cumbria (HI NENC), the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board and Lifted Ventures, 10 pioneering founders have been receiving the guidance and coaching needed to bring their ideas to life and become ‘investor-ready’.

The aim is to ultimately integrate these innovations into the NHS and wider healthcare system. This work is part of the Northern FemTech and Women’s Healthtech Accelerator Programme.

Some of the ideas being supported through the programme included: an app to guide girls aged 9–17 through puberty and their first periods, a Virtual Reality (VR) therapy designed to support survivors of domestic abuse, and an artificial intelligence (AI) tool for diagnosing endometriosis.

Investing in women’s health and the economy

Bringing together entrepreneurial women to showcase these innovations has the potential to significantly improve health outcomes for women and girls across the North of England and beyond, whilst significantly boosting the economy.

The founders pitched their innovations at a ‘Dragon’s Den-style’ event in January, to a room of angel investors and advisory attendees from across the region.

Over £2.7million investment was sought, with the potential to create 33 jobs if the proposals are successful.

The ideas are under review, with the pitches to be scored and investment awarded accordingly. Watch the video below to hear from the founders.

Regional innovators with solutions to national problems

Three of the founders are based locally in the North East, representing the talent and ingenuity to be found close to home.

Suzanne Vernazza, Pelvic Health Physiotherapist at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Founding Director of Know Your Floors CIC, was one of the entrepreneurs involved in the programme.

Suzanne is developing an app to educate women on pelvic health issues and the exercises they can do to improve symptoms.

At the investor pitch event held in January, Suzanne said: “I was here today to pitch some of the work I am doing to improve education and awareness of pelvic floors and pelvic health.

“It is a taboo subject that doesn’t get spoken about, and I’m here to make it mainstream, accessible, and fun.”

On pitching her pelvic health app, ‘Know Your Floors’, to a room of investors, Suzanne commented: “It’s been a huge confidence boost – I pitched a year ago and I did a one minute pitch. I can see a huge amount of improvement within my self-confidence, being able to talk about investment and money, as well as the benefits to patients.

“Seeing that growth and knowing I now have the confidence to move forward, gain investment and get my app off the ground has been life-changing.”

Founders from other regions are also involved in the project, to share ideas that can benefit women in the North East and North Cumbria.

Closing the gender health and wealth gap

Adenike Bamigbade, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Closer Health, has developed a mobile app that offers menstrual tracking and personalised coaching to help users manage symptoms and feel empowered throughout their cycle.

Discussing women’s health and the gender health gap, Adenike said: “Growing up, I came from West Africa, and there’s such a gap there.

“There is so much to learn here and if this country is doing so much to bridge that gap then other countries, especially where I came from, could learn so much from it.”

Speaking at the pitch event, Jordan Dargue, Co-Founder of Lifted Ventures, said: “We have developed this accelerator programme with investor readiness at the core.

“We’ve had 10 female founders come through the cohort, and we’ve really supported them to understand what potential their business model has, how it should look and how it is scalable for investors.

“This has led to an investor showcase where we have brought investors from across the region into a room.

“The founders have had the opportunity to pitch their businesses in an ask for investment, but ultimately for support to help them get into the right trusts, the right business support networks and ultimately, to put them in the eyes of the investors for future growth and future funding.”

Dr Nicola Hutchinson, Chief Executive Officer for HI NENC, said: “Many of these founders were inspired to create their innovations from personal experiences, so they understand first-hand how important their ideas are and the gap they could fill in the market.

“This programme has showcased the incredible potential of women-led innovation in addressing the health challenges faced by women and girls in our region—who better understands women’s health issues than women themselves?”

Dr Hutchinson added, “This is just the beginning of HI NENC’s commitment to improving women’s health through innovation, and we’re excited to see many more funding opportunities that will empower innovators in the FemTech space.”

Next steps for the innovators

While the pitch event held in January marked the end of the accelerator programme, HI NENC will continue to support the innovators involved in the pitch as they scale their ideas.

Long established in the region’s health and life sciences ecosystem, HI NENC is uniquely positioned to offer tailored support to innovators looking to access the NHS.

Through the newly launched Women’s Health programme, HI NENC works closely with the North East and North Cumbria ICB to tackle critical health issues highlighted in the first 10-year Women’s Health Strategy for England, including menopause, cancer, and the health impacts of violence against women and girls.