First Global AWS Healthcare Accelerator Addresses Workforce Issues

Healthcare is so vast and complex in every aspect, from diagnoses to equipment, that it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that successful outcomes come about only through the efforts of doctors, nurses, and all members of the interdisciplinary care team.

The Covid-19 pandemic, when so many clinicians and health system employees performed with extraordinary bravery and compassion, was a reminder of the humanity at the heart of healthcare. Sadly, many of those same people have left the field in the face of crushing demands, stress, overwork, and staffing shortages.

At the end of the day, no matter how advanced the science or technology, #healthcare doesn’t work without humans. That’s why we’ve made addressing the problems of the #healthcareworkforce the focus of our new Amazon Web Services (AWS) Healthcare Accelerator: Global Cohort for Workforce. It’s our first global healthcare accelerator and first to prioritize the global healthcare #workforce.

After talking with healthcare leaders around the world, it was evident workforce was a top concern worldwide as they all identified the employee shortage and the burdens on workers as one of the biggest problems they face. Staffing shortages mean more patients go untreated or experience harmful delays in care. Insufficient staffing pulls clinicians away from direct patient care to handle less important tasks.

As advanced in science and technology as healthcare has become, it lags behind other sectors in innovating to help its employees and relieve workforce burdens. We are now at an important crossroads that has pushed the need for workforce innovation to the forefront.

How much can technology do to alleviate the very human problems of stress, work-life balance and burnout? We believe quite a bit. 亚马逊 and AWS were built with an unwavering focus on solving customer problems and making processes that were once inefficient more efficient. We’re also pretty good at taking solutions that are effective, but small, and growing them to enormous scale. ???

For purposes of the accelerator, we’ve broken the problem into three areas:

1.??????Training the workforce – This includes making learning more interesting and customized in areas such as continuous professional development and teaching digital skills across the workforce. For example, healthcare organizations could use machine learning for customized instruction, AR/VR simulation training, and leverage other technologies to train staff for new ways of working.

2.??????Retaining the workforce – We’re looking for innovative ways to reduce individual workloads and burnout by removing friction in workday processes and systems, empowering new ways of working, and supporting wellbeing and flexible working. This could include using technology to streamline clinical workflows, automate routine tasks, upskill existing roles, innovate in the work environment, and outsource basic tasks to AI-enabled solutions. ??

3.?????Deploying the workforce – We want technologies that support the move to new ways of working in healthcare within virtual wards, community settings, and home care settings. These solutions could include using technology to monitor data to safely deploy a mobile workforce interacting across devices and networks, as well as patient-empowering collaborative tools that reduce unnecessary and repetitive tasks.

AWS and our partners AlchemistX and Plexal , will select the #startups to participate in this virtual, four-week technical, business, and mentorship accelerator. Those chosen will receive AWS Promotional Credits, specialized AWS training, mentoring from healthcare domain and technical subject matter experts, business development, go-to-market guidance, investment guidance, and potential proof-of-concept opportunities with public sector healthcare customers. We’ll bring in industry leaders to collaborate with the startups on such topics as defining business models, regulatory pathways, clinical validation, EHR integration, and more.

There will be two cohorts of 10 startups apiece: one for the Americas and one for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. However, applications from companies located anywhere across the globe will be considered. To be eligible, a startup must be post-revenue and have customers and a validated solution. The company does not have to be in the healthcare field, however; we welcome applicants from other sectors who think their ideas are applicable to healthcare.

Applicants will be judged on several factors, including the innovative and unique nature of the company, the overall value the solution will bring to the healthcare industry, the creative application of AWS to solve workforce problems, and the experience of the startup team and its ability to deliver results.

The evidence shows that many groups are under-represented in founding and scaling health technology companies. At AWS, we welcome applications from founders of all genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds, who in turn reflect the diversity of people within and served by global health and care systems.

Hospitals, clinics and medical practices desperately need workers and ways to better train, retain and deploy them. If you think your startup can help, we want to hear from you. Applications are open and must be submitted by Jan. 8, 2023. To learn more and apply, visit the AWS Healthcare Accelerator: Global Cohort for Workforce.