KI's Innovation prize 2024 awarded to three KI SÖS researchers
During the annual Inauguration of new Professors at Karolinska Institutet on Thursday, October 3rd, President Annika Östman Wernerson presented the 2024 prize for innovation and utilization to Jacob Hollenberg, Mattias Ringh and Leif Svensson. The trio received the award for their work in designing, technically developing, scientifically evaluating and subsequently implementing and operationalizing a system with volunteer lifesavers who are alerted via an app to sudden cardiac arrests.
The “SMS lifesaver” app, which is currently operational in the majority of the 21 regions in Sweden and throughout Denmark, has nearly 300,000 users. The app alerts people who are nearby a sudden cardiac arrest, who can perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and who can retrieve a nearby defibrillator.
Annually, approximately 6 ,000 sudden cardiac arrests outside of hospitals are reported by ambulance services, but only about 600 survive. Through early alert to 112, early life-saving interventions in the form of CPR and early defibrillation, up to 50% can survive.
“It feels fantastic that this research project has shown such great results and that the system could subsequently be implemented and made available in everyday life so that more people can survive a sudden unexpected cardiac arrest. Many thanks to Karolinska Institutet for recognizing the collective power of research and innovation with this award, and many thanks to all colleagues and all the fantastic volunteer lifesavers,” says Professor Jacob Hollenberg who is the Director of the Center for Resuscitation science at the Department of Clinical Science and Education, Södersjukhuset, Karolinska Institutet, and a Senior Physician in cardiology and intensive care at Södersjukhuset.
From when the idea was created in 2008 until today in 2024, the system has been developed, spread and received a lot of international attention. Results from the research project have been published in reputable journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine. In addition, a number of people have survived cardiac arrest as a result of bystanders being able to use their skills at an early stage.
Starting in 2022 Karolinska Institutet awarded a prize for innovation and utilization.
The prize will be awarded to one or more active researchers/research students (employed, adjunct or affiliated with KI).
If an individual cannot be considered to be behind the innovation on their own, a maximum of three people can share the prize.
Anyone can nominate one or more candidates. Self-nominations are accepted.