Lyfebulb and UnitedHealth Group Announce The Winner of Their 2019 Innovation Challenge for Patient Entrepreneurs
Challenge brought together 10 finalists who are building solutions for those affected by depression and anxiety
MINNETONKA, Minn., and NEW YORK (July 24, 2019) Lyfebulb LLC and UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) are pleased to announce that Rohan Dixit of Lief Therapeutics was selected as the winner of the “Addressing Unmet Needs in Depression & Anxiety: An Innovation Challenge.” Lief Therapeutics has developed an intuitive, data-driven wearable consumer product for anxiety used to teach the skill of mindfulness using heart rate variability.
Rohan was selected from a group of passionate innovators who were finalists in the Challenge, including Jay Brown of Health Behavior Solutions; Matt Loper of Wellth; Lisa McLaughlin of Workit Health; Katherine Ponte of ForLikeMinds; Jan Samzelius of NeuraMetrix; Dr. Ryan Stoll of COMPASS for Courage; Dr. Mehran Talebinejad of NeuroQore; Quayce Thomas of Timsle; and Keith Wakeman of SuperBetter.
Dennis Urbaniak, Chief Digital Officer of Havas Health & You, who served as Chair of the Jury commented, “Rohan not only has a mission and purpose that aligned with the criteria of the challenge, but also has taken a conventional approach and reimagined it through the patient experience with evidence-based science behind it. Additionally, he has identified viable pathways to commercialization.”
The Innovation Challenge was open to established companies of all sizes that are founded or led by an entrepreneur who has been affected by depression and anxiety, whether as a patient or through a loved one, and who has created a product or service to address an unmet need identified through personal experience. The 10 finalists gathered at UnitedHealth Group’s headquarters for two days of meetings, workshops and pitch presentations. The event culminated with a panel of esteemed judges selecting Rohan Dixit for the $25,000 award.
“Partnering with UnitedHealth Group for a second year in a new therapeutic area which impacts all of healthcare is tremendous for Lyfebulb,” said Dr. Karin Hehenberger, Founder and CEO of Lyfebulb. “We have established a community of people affected by and caring about depression and anxiety, from which we sourced ten exceptional patient entrepreneurs to join us in Minnetonka over the past few days. Their passion and determination to solve daily issues that burden so many individuals came through clearly during the pitches.”
The judges included experts from the patient, business and medical communities including Mike Christy, Senior Vice President of Venture Development at UnitedHealth Group; Dr. Raja M. David, Founder and Owner of Minnesota Center for Collaborative/Therapeutic Assessment; Matt Kudish, Executive Director at NAMI-NYC (National Association of Mental Illness); AnnMarie Otis, Patient Advocate; Dr. Bethany Ranes, Research Associate at UnitedHealth Group; and Dennis Urbaniak, Chief Digital Officer at Havas Health & You.
“Through this innovation challenge, we learned from patients and caretakers who live and breathe the challenges of this disease every day,” said Dr. Deneen Vojta, Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Research & Development at UnitedHealth Group. “We see depression and anxiety touch all populations we serve and we valued the opportunity to bring together entrepreneurs, health care providers, patient advocates and business leaders at the summit. Together, we can help bring the most innovative, effective tools – inspired by personal experiences – into the marketplace.”