BETA.HEALTH STEERING COMMITTEE
CHAIR
Ricco Norman Dyhr – CEO, ZUH
MEMBERS
Barbara Malene Fischer – Research Director, Rigshospitalet
Bjarne Steen Dahler-Eriksen – Medical Director, OUH
Søren Pihlkjær Hjortshøj – Medical Director, AAUH
Thomas Balle Kristensen – CEO, AUH
Anne-Mette Hvas – Dean, Health, AU
Pascal Madeleine – Director of the PhD study, Doctoral School in Medicine, AAU
Stine Kruse – Head of Startup Support and Business Development, DTU Skylab
Trine Winterø – Vice Dean for Innovation at Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH
Uffe Holmskov – Vice-Dean for Research and Innovation, Faculty of Health Sciences, SDU
Marie Lommer Bagger – Founder and CEO Measurelet
Mia Bielecki – Senior Vice President, Combination Product Development, Ascendis Pharma
OBSERVERS
Mikkel Bülow Skovborg – Senior Vice President, The Novo Nordisk Foundation
Sarah Kulahin Roed – Senior Scientific Manager, The Novo Nordisk Foundation
ABOUT BETA.HEALTH
MISSION
BETA.HEALTH makes it easier for healthcare professionals to innovate from within the hospital system. We envision a healthcare system where clinical ideas aren't lost – but accelerated. Where solutions are developed, tested and implemented to improve real-world patient care and outcomes.
We believe that the most powerful innovations come from those closest to the problems. That’s why BETA.HEALTH is designed to work from the inside out – embedded within hospitals, and focused on real-world impact!
Our mission is to support hospital-based innovation through early-stage funding, tailored expertise and structured pathways to validation and scale. By strengthening innovation capacity across the healthcare system, we aim to create lasting value for patients, healthcare providers – and society.
BETA.HEALTH launched in 2022 as a national pilot programme to accelerate hospital-based innovation in Denmark. It was established in response to a growing need: While ideas for better care often emerged inside hospitals, few were supported with the resources or expertise needed to succeed.
Funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation and supported by Denmark’s five university hospitals and regional partners, BETA.HEALTH provides a dedicated pathway that empowers clinicians and researchers to transform their ideas into validated, scalable solutions.
Since 2022, we've supported more than 100 projects across all five regions, resulting in new diagnostics, digital tools, workflow improvements and solutions that have already benefitted over half a million patients.
BACKGROUND
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BETA.HEALTH is a missing link between clinical research and solutions ready to implement.
Mads Krogsgaard Thomsen
CEO, Novo Nordisk Fonden
BETA.HEALTH REVIEW COMMITTEE
MEMBERS
Egon Steen Toft – Head of Research, AAUH
Henriette Svarre Nielsen – Professor Consultant, Hvidovre Hospital and UCPH
Ismail Gögenur – Professor & Senior Consultant, Dep. of Surgery, ZUH and UCPH
Ole Graumann – MD, PhD, Professor, Dep. of Radiology, AUH
Pernille Just Vinholt – Professor, Leading Physician at OUH
Jesper Grønbæk – Founder & CEO, Health Tech Hub Copenhagen
Karen Skjerbæk Jørgensen – CCO & Vice President Digital Health Trifork
Niels Kvorning Ternov – MD, PhD, Postdoc, CEO & Co-founder Melatech ApS
Stine Mølgaard Sørensen – Partner, Alliance VC
Tony Cheng-fu Chang – Director, Healthtech, BioInnovation Institute
ORGANISATION & GOVERNANCE
BETA.HEALTH is a national programme anchored within Denmark’s five university hospitals. Its activities are funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation and coordinated through a secretariat based at Rigshospitalet and Aarhus University Hospital.
The programme is governed by our Steering Committee comprised of the five university hospital CEOs and key public and private healthcare ecosystem decision-makers. This ensures strategic alignment with hospital priorities, and integration into the broader healthcare system.
All projects applying to BETA.HEALTH are assessed by our independent Review Committee – an external panel of experts from healthcare, research, and industry who select the projects that receive a BETA.HEALTH grant.
Our team includes innovation specialists, clinical researchers, strategists, and project managers who work closely with grantees and partners to support innovation projects with high potential for real-world impact.