TV show gives innovators a chance to pitch ideas on how to improve health care in N.B.
A Dragons' Den inspired competition that aims to advance health care in the region with half a million dollars on the line is set to hit the screen next month, after the pandemic forced the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation to pivot.
The Lions' Den involves three teams of medical professionals pitching to a team of investors in the hopes of receiving the top funding prize to help make their innovative ideas a reality.
"With the pandemic, we wanted to create something that was safe, first and foremost, and also unique and engaging," says Shannon Hunter, marketing and communications director with the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation. "So, instead of just doing a virtual broadcast of the teams in the room, we've been filming for about nine months."
Filming finally wrapped last week with final scene showcasing which idea has been chosen – a production process that was complicated by COVID-19 lockdowns across the country.
"Some days were very complex in terms of the technology side," says Hunter, "having three film crews across Canada filming at the same time a virtual meeting."
"But all in all it was a fantastic experience and I think the medical teams are really happy with the end result."
Three-minute pitch videos were sent to each of the five lions – Bob Owens, Miranda Hubbs, Scott McCain, Mike Webb, and Dr. David Elias.
The ideas include improving the speed and accuracy of drug detection with the purchase of a tandem mass spectrometer, an imaging enhancement centre where clinicians can hold 3D-printed replicas of the body parts they'll be working on, and enhanced lung cancer care for patients at the Saint John Regional Hospital.
"This is really an opportunity to highlight some of the unbelievable work done at the hospital," says president and CEO of the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation Jamie Gallagher.
"And to give people a sense that we're really leading edge, we're working right on the edge here in Saint John and we're doing some great things."
The lions, however, are not the only judges – along with the top prize of $500,000 there's also a $75,000 prize for the runner-up called the community choice award, which is given to the team voted by the public as the most deserving.
To unlock that money, however, the community has to match that same amount in donations.
The Lions' Den premieres on Sept. 10.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.