Women Play an Increasingly Large Role in Health Care Innovation
In the 21st century, increasing attention is being paid to gender equality. International Women's Day is a great opportunity to remind us that there is still a long way to go in order to achieve an equal society - science and business are both areas where change is needed.
According to UNESCO, only 33% of researchers in the world are women, and although the situation in Latvia is much more balanced (52.2% of researchers are women) we cannot afford to relax, because there is still a need for the field of start-ups to catch up.
According to data from the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia, 36.6% of Latvian women had higher education in 2019, which is 7.3% higher than the European Union average. Furthermore, 75.7% of all professional education and university graduates for healthcare and social welfare programs in 2019 were women. The same data from 2019 also shows that there are already more women than men with a doctorate (3967 and 3830 respectively) – this number is only going to grow. Additionally, in 2019 among people with doctoral degrees, women dominated in all age brackets up to 60, and men only outnumbered them in the generations beyond that. If this trend continues over 55% of doctoral degrees will be held by women in 40 years’ time.
This clearly shows that there is a rising number of women in Latvia who are highly educated and motivated to work in the field of healthcare. However, according to EIT Health Latvia Hub data women are the founders or owners of only about a third of Latvian health start-ups.
‘We, at the EIT Health Hub in Latvia, are pleased to see a growing number of female entrepreneurs who show an interest in seeking new solutions to a variety of healthcare problems. There are many health diagnoses that predominantly affect women, but which have historically been forgotten. Women also constitute a large portion of healthcare workers with their own experiences. Many women start studying in STEM fields. Therefore, healthcare solutions must be inclusive and responsive to the diversity in our populations. Female representation in every aspect of healthcare is a necessity. The EIT Health Hub in Latvia works to empower female entrepreneurs.
We want to recognise women’s contribution to science and entrepreneurship by inviting them to transform their ideas into impactful projects. We believe that the involvement of women is especially significant in Latvia where women are highly educated and motivated to work in healthcare,’ says Baiba Pētersone, Director of the Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) International Department and Head of the EIT Health Hub in Latvia.
The EIT Health Hub in Latvia has been operating for a little over two years. It is located at RSU and has increased their presence in the Latvian healthcare innovation ecosystem. Creating a support system for women who want to innovate is part of the Hub’s role.
‘Supporting and empowering women in innovation, we help the whole ecosystem to grow. I want to encourage thinking about achievements that women in Latvia have already reached and how we can help each other grow by supporting more and more women who want to create their innovative solutions, build successful teams and develop great products, solving issues in the health care industry. The more empowered women in innovation we have, the more success stories we will achieve,’ says Marina Petrakova, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of VREACH, Founder of Riga TechGirls.
Riga TechGirls is the first community in Latvia dedicated to educating and inspiring girls and women about technology. They have been very active in the Latvian innovation ecosystem – starting from projects like Iepazīsti tehnoloģijas (Learn About Technology) that encourages women to learn new tech skills and find work in the field; to events like the Women. Technology. Sustainability. hackathon, which will be taking place this week.
‘Not everyone is cut out to be a founder of a start-up, and yet it`s even more complex for women as they need to balance the growth of their companies with taking care of their families. Support from various EIT Health programs over the last three years has been invaluable for Semantic Intelligence and has opened many doors to the rather conservative healthcare industry. I am looking into the future with a strong belief in female power to bring innovations to life and to create sustainable healthcare for everyone,’ says Vita Stūre, Founder & CEO of Semantic Intelligence, LLC.
‘Empowering female innovators in healthcare has a crucial impact on innovative healthcare development in Europe! Female founders often bear a heavy load in balancing work and family, especially during these turbulent times. However, women have a unique ability to understand what other women feel, and see things from their point of view, meaning empathy! And this is the basis for building a strong supportive female community that would become a seedbed for healthcare innovations for improving and ultimately saving lives,’ says Anastacia Drebot, Founder & CEO of MedHydrogel.
In 2021 EIT Health is organising Women Entrepreneurship Bootcamp with the aim to help women-led or co-led start-ups to connect to a network of mentors and investors. The seven-week programme provides intensive training, mentoring and matchmaking opportunities. Organisers are especially keen on start-ups that are women-led or co-founded, or with a woman in the C-suite management team. All entries can be submitted until 16 March.
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