Wellteq Digital Health Inc announced its partnership with Monash University in Australia, signing a letter of intent to commercialize sleep assessment technology and coaching solutions to combat fatigue, insomnia, and burnout in shift worker employees.
The Vancouver-based company is hoping to integrate the intellectual property for sleep technology into the existing health assessment technology.
READ: Wellteq Digital Health completes execution of perpetual license agreement with one of Asia Pacific’s leading sleep technology providers
“The Monash sleep technology license along with our recently announced license, are guided by our strategic focus on the four behavioral levers of health, and sleep is as important to one’s health as nutrition, exercise, and mental wellbeing,” said Scott Montgomery, CEO of Wellteq in a statement. “Even the best exercise routine, diet and mindset cannot sustain health without proper sleep.”
Poor sleep is a significant contributor to health issues including mental health, cardiac illness, metabolic conditions, and some cancers. A recent journal in the Lancet highlighted that sleep, anxiety, and depressive disorders have increased since the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Wellteq said that the initial commercialization efforts will focus on the aviation, healthcare, mining, and construction sectors, where workers are at heightened risk of excessive sleepiness at work and insomnia at home.
“We are delighted to explore a partnership with Wellteq, a company committed to improving health and wellbeing through digital solutions,” said Monash University’s Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, deputy director professor Shantha Rajaratnam. “We will work with Wellteq to deliver sleep-related products for improving workplace mental health and wellbeing, and also productivity.”
The Melbourne-based global university has researched and developed sleep intellectual property for over seven years and holds a patent application for the current program.
In Australia, a Deloitte Access Economics report commissioned by the Sleep Health Foundation showed around one in 10 Australians have a sleep disorder that can substantially affect their wellbeing, safety, and productivity, with an estimated overall cost of A$14.4 billion in financial costs with a further A$36.6 billion in non-financial costs related to poor wellbeing.
Wellteq is focused on coaching the world to better health focusing on the four health levers — activity, nutrition, mindset, and sleep. The company is working on developing personalized, prevention-focused solutions to engage people in all countries with healthier lifestyles, and reduce behavior-related healthcare spending.
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