Medtech4Health: Implementation of medical technology in healthcare in 2025

With this call for proposals Medtech4Health wants to strengthen the opportunities for healthcare organizations to implement new innovative medical technology products or solutions in their activities.

The projects should contribute to the clinical implementation and the coordinating participant should be a healthcare or care organization that conducts established activities for routine care or care and receives patients or users. The organization should be responsible for the activities where the solutions are implemented. The coordinating participant can also be an organization that has the task of implementing in a number of healthcare or care organizations, for example a procurement unit or a purchasing center.

We would like to see projects collaborate with, for example, authorities, procurement units, medical technology departments, academia or institutes, companies or patient organizations. Regional and municipal cooperation is seen as very positive.

the call for proposals has a budget of SEK 10 million. Project can be financed with a minimum of SEK 300,000 and a maximum of SEK 1,500,000 over a maximum of two years. The grant may correspond to a maximum of 40 percent of the project's total eligible costs.

New medical technology solutions need to be implemented faster to help meet the challenges facing healthcare. With this call for proposals Medtech4Health wants to strengthen the ability to implement new innovative medical technology products and solutions in healthcare organizations. Implementation often means that the products or solutions need to be adapted to meet the specific needs of a healthcare or care provider. This may involve changes in, for example, processes and organization to ensure a successful implementation.

Contribute to a sustainable system transformation

Vinnova is tasked with promoting sustainable growth and system transformation. To implement sustainable system transformation, Vinnova has chosen to base itself on the UN's global sustainability goals, defined in the 2030 Agenda. There, Vinnova prioritizes two perspectives: gender equality and climate change. All initiatives and project that Vinnova finances are assessed based on how they contribute to these perspectives.

Vinnova therefore always follows up and assesses this:

• If women and men participate in the project on an equal footing, receive contributions and have influence and power over the project.
• How well the project analyzes and takes a position on whether there are sex or gender aspects that are relevant to the project's problem formulation, solutions and effects.
• How well the project contributes to the climate transition with a focus on:
  - reduced greenhouse gas emissions
  - reduced emissions of environmental pollutants
  - increased circularity and resource efficiency

Gender-equal innovation – what it means for those seeking funding from us

Agenda 2030 as a driver for innovation

The call for proposals will contribute to a more gender-equal and sustainable healthcare system. By this we mean that the partners in the project are expected to actively work for gender equality and contribute to reducing negative impacts on the environment and climate. This applies both to the development of the project, staffing, content and implementation, and to the analysis of the effects of the solution that the project is working on.

The medical technology solutions that Medtech4Health wants to prioritize in this call for proposals should:

• contribute to increased gender equality in healthcare and social care
• reduce negative impact on the environment and climate
• contribute to using healthcare resources more economically.
• reduce the need for transportation of people and goods
• reduce resource and energy consumption as well as emissions of toxic waste during manufacturing and use

We encourage applicant to look at aspects such as:

• What value the project creates and for whom, and how this should be objectively measured and followed up.

Please consider gender equality in particular when you:

• examines the need or the problem area of the solution and its usefulness: Who develops ideas and solutions, which user or patient groups benefit from them and how this is implemented
• define the target group and how you include it in the development work
• assembles a project group, possible steering group or focus group and invites other project participants
• plans division of labor, participation, power and influence in the project
• plans how the effects of the proposed project will be measured and evaluated

The handbook "Inclusive Innovation - A handbook in medical technology" has been developed by Medtech4Health as guidance for actors who are in the initial phase of their work with gender equality and inclusion.

Handbook for Inclusive Innovation

The tool "User participation in practice" and other tools that may be useful in the project are available at www.medtecharena.se, which is why applicant are recommended to look at these before submitting proposal.

Making scientific publications and results available

When results from research and innovation are made freely available, more people can contribute to solving societal challenges. This the call for proposals will help make results available to everyone. This means that all publication of results, not just scientific, should be open access.

The call for proposals is aimed at public and private healthcare organizations that want to improve their activities by implementing new medical technology solutions.

The area that defines medical technology is very broad. A product is medical technology if its aim is to diagnose, treat, alleviate or cure a condition. Medical technology includes a wide variety of products, such as X-ray and radiotherapy equipment, orthopedic implants, stents, scalpels, medical record systems, walkers, pacemakers, dialysis machines and apps.

It is positive if the projects collaborate with, for example, authorities, procurement units, academia, companies or patient organizations. Regional and municipal cooperation is seen as very positive.

Terms used in the call text:

• Implementation
  Implementation is the approach used to introduce new methods into an activities. If you use the knowledge available about implementation, there is a significantly greater chance that the change process will go as planned. (definition from the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare)
• Caregiver
  State public authority, region, municipality, other legal entity that conducts established health and medical care activities for routine care and that receives patients.
• Caregiver
  Public authority that is responsible for or carries out interventions for the elderly or people with disabilities (public care provider) and legal entity that carries out such interventions (private care provider).
• Users
  Person who receives individually needs-tested interventions from social services.
• Patient
  Person who receives or is registered to receive health care.
• Medical device
  Product used to detect, prevent, monitor, treat or alleviate a disease; detect, monitor, treat, alleviate or compensate for an injury or disability; investigate, modify or replace anatomy or a physiological process or control fertilization.

To be eligible for funding, the project must include at least one of the following activities:

• Test and evaluate new medical technology solutions, and analyze the need to adapt services, processes and organization to be able to implement the solution.
• Evaluate the value and benefit of the solution for patients, users, relatives or staff, or the financial gain from its implementation.
• Define eligibility requirements and needs to enable adaptation or procurement of a new innovative medical technology solution.

The activities should be included within the experimental development support basis, which can be simply described as combining, shaping and using existing knowledge to develop new or improved products, processes or services.

For a full definition, see funding bases and levels

We do not fund project or activities such as:

• refers to a physical product or service that is already implemented on the market
• refers to pharmaceuticals or biotechnology*
• refers to a veterinary idea
• shall conduct clinical studies to obtain CE marking, FDA approval or equivalent regulatory approval in other countries.
• business development or marketing
• intellectual property activities
• the implementation of routine or recurring changes to existing goods, manufacturing methods, manufacturing processes and services.

The project application should clearly describe:

• The challenge you intend to solve or improve in the applicant's activities.
• The assessed benefit for patients, users and society when the solution is implemented.
• The project's expected end results and how the solution will be scaled up or attract follow-on investments for further development.
• How the effects of the implementation should be measured.

The project results should ultimately contribute to improving the applicant's healthcare and social care activities and provide increased quality for the individual.

* However, drugs can be a component of a concept where medical technology is used for, for example, dosing or injections. It can also be project with implants that are surface-treated with drugs to prevent complications.

What costs can be financed?

Vinnova's funding is covered by state aid rules. The rules govern what types of costs we can finance. These are called eligible costs.

In this the call for proposals these types of costs are eligible:

• Personnel costs: Salaries, social security contributions and other personnel costs.
• Equipment, land and buildings: Instruments, equipment and rent for premises other than regular business premises.
• Consulting and licensing costs: Consulting services, knowledge and patents purchased or licensed from a third party. Costs for consulting services from third parties may not exceed 20 percent of a project party's budget.
• Other direct costs: For example, materials, supplies and travel necessary to carry out the project.
• Indirect costs (overhead): Costs that are not incurred as an immediate consequence of but can be related to the project, such as regular premises and cleaning.
  Indirect costs may constitute a maximum of 30 percent of personnel costs. Universities, university colleges, and certain research organizations and government agencies have higher maximum limits depending on the type of activities.

For more detailed information about which costs Vinnova can finance, see Instructions for eligible costs

What eligibility requirements apply to costs financed by Vinnova?

For a cost to be eligible, it must be necessary for the activities of the project. Project costs must also be properly accounted for and reported separately from the organization's other costs. An organization may not claim someone else's costs as its own.

For more detailed information on which eligibility requirements, limitations and exceptions apply, see Instructions for eligible costs

The state aid rules also govern how much of the costs Vinnova can finance. This is determined individually for each organization. Vinnova therefore differentiates between how much funding the project can receive and how much each participant can receive.

How much funding can the project receive?

For the call for proposals there is a budget of 10 million SEK. Project can be financed with a minimum of 300,000 SEK and a maximum of 1,500,000 SEK for a maximum of two years. The grant may correspond to a maximum of 40 percent of the project's total eligible costs

How much funding can a participant receive?

How much funding each participant can receive depends mainly on:

• what activities the party will carry out in the project
• party size and activities

In this the call for proposals Vinnova provides support for experimental development.

What is experimental development?

Experimental development can be simply described as combining, shaping and using existing knowledge to develop new or improved products, processes or services.

For a full definition, see funding bases and levels

How much of the costs can we finance?

The size of the organization and type of activity determines how large a proportion of the costs we can finance, i.e. the maximum level of support.

Bonus basics

If the project is covered by any of these bonus bases, we can finance a higher proportion of the costs according to the table:

• Actual cooperation: Some level of cooperation between small and larger companies, between companies in two different European countries or between research organisations and companies.
• Dissemination of results: Extensive dissemination through, for example, conferences or open databases.
• Another bonus basis.

For full information on these bonus bases, see funding Bases and Support Levels

We grant funding in accordance with Article 25 of the EU Commission's General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER).

De minimis support ( support of minor importance)

How much funding can a participant receive?

In this the call for proposals we can also provide de minimis support, also known as support of minor importance. We can finance up to 100 percent of a project party's costs.

An organization can receive a maximum of 300,000 euros over a three-year period in this form of support, regardless of the funder and project. This means that if the same organization has received support of lesser importance in other project from other funders in the past, it will affect how large the support can be in this the call for proposals.

Submit a certificate of de minimis support when you submit proposal. This is required for us to be able to grant this support.

Certificates of de minimis support can be found on this page

We grant funding in accordance with the EU Commission Regulation (2023/2831) on de minimis support.

Not state aid

How much funding can a participant receive?

In this the call for proposals we also provide support to organisations that do not engage in economic activities. This means that the organisation does not offer a service or product on a market. This usually includes publicly funded healthcare providers, universities and university colleges, research institutes and other organisations.

Publicly funded health and care activities carried out by private health and care organizations are usually counted as non-economic activities if the costs are in the non-economic and publicly funded part of the activity.

We can finance up to 100 percent of such an organization's costs.

How do you determine whether an organization is engaged in economic activities?

An organization that offers any kind of service or product on a market is considered to be conducting economic activities and cannot be granted this form of support. It does not matter how the organization is financed, whether it is public or private, or whether it has a profit motive. It also does not matter what legal form the business has. For example, whether it is a limited liability company, a trading company, an economic association, a non-profit association or a foundation.

If you are unsure whether an organization in your project is conducting economic activities, contact call manager. However, the organization is responsible for assessing whether it is conducting economic activities.

In order for Vinnova to take a position on and assess your proposal it must meet certain formal eligibility requirements. If the requirements are not met, proposal will be rejected immediately.

Eligibility requirements on organizational form of project partners

• The coordinating participant should be a healthcare or social care organization that receives patients or users and is responsible for the activities where the solutions are to be implemented.
• All project partners must be legal entities. Vinnova does not grant funding to individual companies.
• The coordinating party must be a Swedish legal entity and conduct activities in Sweden.

Eligibility requirements for project

• The project manager must be employed by one of the project parties.
• The project may not begin before proposal is submitted.
• Costs for consulting services from outside parties may constitute a maximum of 20 percent of a project party's budget.

Eligibility requirements on proposal

• Proposal must be written in Swedish or English.
• Proposal must contain a project description and CVs for project manager and key personnel for all project parties.

What is assessed?

Potential

• To what extent does the project have the potential to lead to actual implementation of new medical technology solutions, which includes a plan for long-term funding.
• To what extent does the new solution create benefits for patients, users and relatives and improve the healthcare and social care operations where the solution is to be implemented.
• To what extent the solution has potential to be scaled up and spread nationally and internationally and thereby create further benefit.
• How well the project contributes to the climate transition with a focus on:
  - reduced greenhouse gas emissions
  - reduced emissions of environmental pollutants
  - increased circularity and resource efficiency
• How well the project is assessed to contribute to increased gender equality.

Actors

• How well the project team is composed in terms of gender distribution. As well as how well power and influence are distributed between women and men in the project team.
• How well-composed the project team is in terms of competence, experience and commitment.
• The project manager's skills and experience to successfully lead the project.
• To what extent does the project have relevant involvement and inclusion of patients, users, relatives, users or stakeholders.
• To what extent does cooperation occur across regional or municipal borders?
• The extent to which the project team has access to relevant sustainability expertise.

Feasibility
To what extent:

• Caregivers are clearly the driving force in the implementation of the project.
• The activities in the project plan are appropriate for achieving the set project goals.
• The healthcare and/or care organization is committed and involved in the project.
• The project's planned activities are assessed to be able to be implemented in accordance with budget and schedule.
• How well gender equality has been integrated into the project plan.
• How well sustainability aspects have been integrated into the project plan.

How are applications assessed?

Proposal are assessed in competition with other applications submitted to the call for proposals.

This is what the decision process looks like:

1. Proposal are submitted to Vinnova's e-services.
   All applications that meet formal eligibility requirements are assessed by a composite group of specially appointed and appointed evaluator, as well as Vinnova's internal evaluator.
2. Vinnova makes decisions about which project will be financed.
3. Decision will be notified to applicant.

Vinnova also assesses organizations' finances

Innan Vinnova decides on funding a comprehensive assessment is also made of the organizational and financial status of those who receive funding. Vinnova uses information from credit reports, currently from Dun & Bradstreet.

For Vinnova to grant funding, the following applies:

• Organizations seeking funding for personnel costs must be registered as employers with the Swedish Tax Agency.
• Organizations must not be insolvent, undergoing liquidation or corporate restructuring. They must also not have unpaid debts with the Swedish Enforcement Authority.
• Limited liability companies must not have used up half or more of their share capital.
• If requested, SMEs must be able to demonstrate that they have the financial means to implement the project according to their budget in proposal. They cannot use public funding or their own funds intended for other project to cover project costs in this call for proposals.

Once Vinnova has assessed all applications, a decision will be sent where proposal is either approved or rejected. The decision states how much funding each party in the project will be granted. The decision cannot be appealed.

What happens if you are granted funding?

If your proposal is approved, you must follow Vinnova's general terms and conditions for funding.

The terms and conditions include the following:

• That you will sign a special document in which you approve your participation and commit to carrying out the project.
• That you should report how things are going, your costs and achieved results to Vinnova regularly during the project period.
• If you are multiple parties, you must agree on your mutual rights and obligations in the project in an agreement. It can take time to get a project agreement in place, so it is a good idea to get this in place before the project starts.
• How the results will be used and how scientific publication will take place.

See our general terms and conditions and get help understanding and fulfilling them

Since the call for proposals is part of a strategic innovation program, these special conditions also apply:

• When you apply, you must send a project summary to Medtech4Health, kontakt@medtech4health.se. The project summary template is available on the call's website.
• At least one participant will represent the project at Medtech4Health conferences and other activities, approximately 1-2 times per year.
• When information or results from the project are shared, it should be stated that the work was carried out with funding from the strategic innovation program Medtech4Health, a joint effort by Vinnova, Formas and the Swedish Energy Agency.
• When you submit your final report to Vinnova, you must also send a summary of the project results to Medtech4Health via email: kontakt@medtech4health.se. These must not contain confidential or sensitive information, including copies of scientific or other publications.

We may also decide to add supplementary special conditions for individual project. In such cases, they will be stated in the decision.

You also need to follow these instructions that apply to this the call for proposals:

• In connection with the final report, the project manager must complete a short web survey at https://medtech4health.se/slutrapport/
• Annual follow-up survey from Medtech4Health must be answered.

Could you have to pay back funding?

If you do not follow Vinnova's term, you may be required to repay the loan. This also applies if you have been granted funding incorrectly or for an amount that is too high.

When the call for proposals closes, your proposal will be registered as. Vinnova will then send an email confirmation to the person responsible for the user account, the project manager and the signatory. If you have not received a confirmation within 24 hours of the call for proposals closing, please contact Vinnova.

Once the call for proposals is closed, you cannot change anything in proposal. You can only make additions if we ask you to.

Who can read your proposal?

Your proposal will be read by Vinnova employees and the external evaluator participating in this the call for proposals. Everyone works under a duty of confidentiality.

Applications submitted to Vinnova become public documents. This means that Vinnova must disclose them if requested. Men Vinnova keeps confidential information that could cause financial damage to the individual if disclosed. This could, for example, include information about business and operational conditions, inventions or research results.

Documents you send to Medtech4health are not covered by Vinnova's confidentiality regulations. Therefore, they should not contain confidential or sensitive information.

How Vinnova handles public documents and confidentiality