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Bright Minds. Bold Solutions.

Bright Minds. Bold Solutions

Meet the first-ever Ideator Award winners 

The Arthritis Ideator Awards were created to uncover new ideas, products and technologies that will chart a new course for arthritis management and care. The following four winners each received a $50,000 grant to scale up their idea so more people can benefit from it. 

An app that enables self-care 

OPERAS is an app-based program that captures information on the go, providing trends on symptoms, disease activity and treatments. People living with arthritis can keep track of medications, collect physical activity data and create action plans. Says OPERAS creator, Dr. Linda Li, “It gives a detailed picture to help users lead healthier, pain-free lives.” The Ideator Award grant will help make OPERAS accessible to more people. 

A revolutionary diagnostic tool for knee osteoarthritis 

KneeKG is a dynamic tool that examines biomechanical markers while the knee is in motion, enabling custom treatment plans. “It’s like an electrocardiogram for the heart but for the knee. It tells the doctor exactly what’s going on in the knee, and what needs to be treated,” says Michelle Laflamme, CEO of Emovi, which produces KneeKG. The Ideator Award grant will help bring KneeKG to 500 healthcare centres in Canada. 

Smart in-soles that can help improve your gait 

PROVA Innovations has developed a gait rehabilitation system for people with early and mid-stage knee and hip osteoarthritis. Specially designed in-soles in a person’s shoes act as a portable gait lab and virtual trainer on the go. Says Matthew Rosato, PROVA Innovations founder, “Our innovative approach works in real time, outside of the clinic, whether the patient is walking, running or climbing stairs.” The Ideator Award grant will help make these smart in-soles available to more people.  

People’s Choice Winner: Guided Hands 

Guided Hands is an assistive device that guides hand movements to enable people with limited hand mobility to write, draw and access technology such as touch-screen devices. “Improving quality of life is our mission,” says Lianna Genovese, CEO of ImaginAble Solutions, which produces Guided Hands. The Ideator Award grant will help get more of these innovative devices into the hands of more people living with arthritis. 

Learn more about the Arthritis Ideator Program