At school, no-one realised I was dyslexic and this probably impacted my confidence in the early years. A teacher described me as an ‘enigma!’.
I left school and embarked on an engineering apprenticeship but in my late 20s, I met a friend who was about to start a degree. He was no smarter than me and I realised a degree was a route I could also pursue.
I went to night school at a local college and took maths and physics A levels. I got into Solent University for a degree in Electronics Engineering with Business Studies.
From engineering to biomechanics
I enjoyed the educational process and discovered the Teaching Companies Scheme (a Knowledge Transfer Partnership ) which meant I could do a Masters degree whilst being paid. So I started an engineering career in food production technology whilst studying for a Masters degree in Behavioural Studies.
It was then I was introduced to the process of electrical muscle stimulation and that triggered my interest in biomechanics. I subsequently discovered this innovative process was already being adopted by Salisbury Hospital to treat the effects of paralysis.
Feeling desk bound in my current job, I applied for a role within the Salisbury Hospital team but didn’t think I stood a chance. Amazingly, I got the job!
Biomechanics to biomedical engineering
That role initiated my first introduction to the world of biomedical engineering. The project I was working on involved implanted nerve muscle stimulation for treating the effects of strokes.
The original innovation for nerve muscle stimulation was developed in the Eastern Bloc and the team at Salisbury Hospital developed and adapted the idea. However when I got there, the innovation consisted of a complex box of electronic tricks. I simplified it by transferring over to digital technology. The product is still being made now - 20 years later!
At that time, a myriad of technological advances were being developed in biomechanics driven by the advances in miniaturised sensors developed for the mobile phone industry. The super successful founders of FitBit were also inventing in the same space as us. Although they had the support of Silicon Valley - and we were located in a hospital in Salisbury!
“I have been lucky in my career. I have been able to make products and see them being used in clinics to treat people. This really impacted me - to see how innovation transforms lives”.
I worked at Salisbury Hospital in the medical physics department - the place in hospitals where most tech innovation takes place.
I remember particularly, we worked with a girl with cerebral palsy and we treated her drop foot syndrome with electrical stimulation. It turned the muscle pathway and she was able to walk normally - avoiding a lifetime of physical disability.
Whilst I was there, the first NHS company in England was spun out called Odstock Medical and I headed up product development there for 10 years.
From the NHS to a Founder
My career isn’t a typically entrepreneurial one but I’m restless and recognise that I constantly need new challenges. Perhaps I get bored too easily. My idea of hell is to sit on a sun lounger for 2 weeks - I always need to explore even on holiday!
I left the hospital and went to work for a design consultancy for about a year. It wasn’t for me though and having just paid off the mortgage, the opportunity enabled me to take a sabbatical. I had already started a part time PhD so the sabbatical helped me complete it.
“It was during this time that I discovered the technology that led to MyRipple and also the desire to tackle human health problems before they become life changing”
Having secured some income developing a patent product, I recognised there was a consultancy service I could offer. I set up Zelemiq - taking design consultancy briefs. Last year Zelemiq Life Science was critical in helping to effectively pivot Ripple.
My belief in Ripple is that it's right for now and the future. The existing wearable technology monitors activity and sleep but not the effects of nutrition. And too many rely on needles or patches to monitor blood sugar.
We bring together the complex relationship between glucose levels from food, lactate levels from activity and exercise, and deep tissue hydrations. Ripple can measure all of these which is key to living a sustainably healthy balanced lifestyle
“How have I kept focused? I believe that what I am doing works. And the chance to change lives is also a huge motivator. I can’t imagine working for anyone else any more. It’s a mixture of vision and stubborn-ness”