Last week, Paola Bello from SHINE 2Europe attended the Tech4Fem event, dedicated to the field of FemTech (Female Technology).
This includes technologies and innovations that are applied to the health and well-being of women and people assigned female at birth. FemTech is concerned with the prevention, diagnosis and management of conditions and diseases that are specific to women, affect women differently to men, affect women disproportionately to men.
This event provided an opportunity to meet different stakeholders and FemTech start ups (mostly women-led and mostly women under 30) and discuss how technology and solutions can support women’s health. Some examples? 3D printed bras to support women with breast asymmetry (whether natural or resulting from surgery), software and AI tools to reduce bias towards patients (especially women) and working styles in line with health status. Participants highlighted both the potential of the FemTech industry- supported by growing data and statistics- and the obstacles it faces, particularly in securing investments and funding.
The day ended with the presentation of Ida Tin, the inventor of the term ‘FemTech’, and the launch of the FemTech Italy Observatory.
The event was an opportunity to share information on the BRAVE WOW project . Acknowledging women’s health as a core element of universal health carries broad implications – on the society as a whole, on women’s rights as well as on the policies regulating the working conditions and the workplace. Protecting health and supporting healthcare workers are closely linked, both grounded in the principle of dignity.