Technological Innovation Center holds first edition of PitchDay

The three winning projects of the third edition of the Inova+ Saúde Award presented the results of their trajectories in the Pre-Incubation Program in Health Innovation, promoted by Bahiana, in partnership with the Maria Emília Foundation, during Pitch Day, a meeting held last Monday (17/02), at Campus Brotas. Throughout the year 2024, the teams, composed of professors and undergraduate and graduate students from Bahiana, participated in training and mentoring that contributed to the development of each initiative. The Pro-Rector of Research, Innovation and Stricto Sensu Graduate Education, Dr. Atson Fernandes, the coordinator of the Technological Innovation Center (NIT), Prof. Me Fernanda Ferraz, the Graduate Advisor, Prof. Dr. Cristiane Dias and the project analyst of the Maria Emília Foundation André Botelho were present.

Throughout the afternoon, the projects "Beetroot-based Plaque-Evidencing Mouthwash", "ReHabRaras – Collaborative Network for Rehabilitation for People with Rare Diseases Servare" and "Negro Atlas of Demography" were presented. For the creator of the mouthwash, João Victor Machado Cirino, the Pre-Incubation Program in Health Innovation of Bahiana is a great supporter of the field of research development in Brazil. "It is expensive to conduct research in the country, not only because of the time it takes to dedicate oneself, but also because of the responsibilities you already have as a professional. Having this support makes all the difference. At first, I looked at my master's research project and didn't think it was as sophisticated as the others. After this process, I started to see it in a more positive light and I see the positive social impacts it can offer to society", declared the researcher.

According to the teacher of Bahiana and coordinator of the group that developed the ReHabRARAS project, Adriana Faiçal, each mentor contributed significantly to the development of the project. "We see that entrepreneurship is very difficult, but it is not impossible. Creating this mentality of learning based on projects, on entrepreneurship, I believe, is the world we want for our children." Matheus Borges Machado, coordinator of the Negro Atlas project group and still a medical undergraduate student at Bahiana, says that he and his fellow project members, being very young, still had no idea what entrepreneurship was. "The mentoring and training helped us a lot to get our idea off the ground and into the market, which is what we wanted. And we were never alone, because we had the support of the institution. We did well this past year, we managed to learn a lot of new things and we hope that this year will be even better", said Matheus.