EarSwitch wins grant to develop hearing aids with medical monitoring

EarSwitch has won a UKRI Healthy Aging Challenge grant, which will allow it to develop its EarMetrix technology into standard hearing aids, enabling a range of medical monitoring.

Once developed, the EarMatrix hearing aid will be able to take blood oxygen, continuous blood pressure, heart rate and temperature readings from the ear.

Technology is set to revolutionize the way older people are cared for in the community.

By enhancing hearing aid technology, medical professionals will be able to access a rich stream of medical data in a non-intrusive manner. This data will allow them to offer proactive support within virtual wards, and help older generations live healthier and more independent lifestyles.

Thanks to a £1m grant and match investment led by Newable Ventures and Britbots, EarSwitch intends to integrate, test and test EarMetrics.

The new funding will allow EarSwitch to incorporate three sensor types into the hearing aid mold. These outputs standard measure for the first in-ear display of heart rate, pulse waveform, breathing rate, central oxygen saturation and ‘cuffless’ blood pressure options.

With continuous monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate, acute episodes and falls in the elderly can be marked sooner. The switch and sensor technology would give healthcare workers access to data that could help make earlier diagnoses.

Nick Gompertz, founder of EarSwitch, said: “Being awarded a UKRI Healthy Aging Grant will transform our company.”

He continued: “Now, we are hoping to find a way for medical monitoring for virtual wards and care environments to be simple, cost-effective and efficient. By giving hearing aid wearers access to technology like ours , we believe we can reduce the digital divide, improve care in the community and help reduce congestion in hospital and care settings by making hospital at home.

promoting inclusivity

Furthermore, the company aims to remove barriers with technology. Standard medical monitoring devices, such as finger-clip pulse oximeters, have been reported to give inaccurate readings for people with darker skin tones. The EarMatrix will fit snugly into the ear canal, taking measurements from an unpigmented part of the ear, helping to incorporate the drive.

Thanks to a successful seed investment, EarSwitch has already demonstrated pulse oximetry with its technology. This was further developed with the UKRI Biomedical Catalyst grant-funded project, working with the Health Tech Hub at the University of the West of England.

The company is now looking to expand its Bristol-based team, based at the University of the West of England’s Future Space. To date, its development has been funded by the NIHR, working with the University of Bath.

Virtual wards have become key to the success of the NHS. So much so that in March of this year, NHS England announced it was making a dynamic purchasing system (DPS) its approved procurement route for trusts buying equipment and systems to run virtual wards and remote monitoring programmes.