The Health Innovation Roundup, sponsored by Health Cities, is written and published weekly by Taproot Edmonton to bring you the latest news and events in research, technology, companies and people changing health for the better in Edmonton. Sign up to get the full edition delivered directly to your inbox. Use the code HEALTHCITY & you’ll get 10% off the first year. Here are some highlights from this week’s Health Innovation Roundup: Headlines Innovate Edmonton is partnering with the provincial and federal governments to fund three new accelerators: Alberta Accelerator by 500, Plug and Play Alberta, and the Community Safety & Wellness (CSW) Accelerator powered by Alchemist. It is also launching the Alberta Pre-accelerator in partnership with Platform Calgary. The Edmonton Zone Medical Staff Association‘s opioid poisoning committee has sent a letter to Premier Jason Kenney, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and other officials calling for emergency action to address the drug poisoning crisis. The group says “the Alberta government’s overhaul of harm reduction supports for people who use drugs is needlessly straining acute care resources as COVID-19 demands grow,” reports Global News. Alberta is one of three provinces that will fund a cystic fibrosis drug called Trikafta. Eligibility criteria hasn’t been specified yet; the drug costs about $300,000 a year at its list price. The final Alberta Nutrition Report Card on Food Environments for Children and Youth revealed that “the pandemic has made it harder for children to eat well, but also suggests that nutrition-focused public health policies can make a positive difference.” The University of Alberta’s Folio reported that online learning modules and an app are in development, which will aim to help communities make improvements on their own. Mental wellness startup DiveThru has been selected to pitch at the She Loves Tech pitch competition, the world’s largest startup competition for women in technology. Founder Sophie Gray shared on LinkedIn that there were over 3,000 applicants, and DiveThru is one of 10 companies pitching in the North America group. Trip Pharma, a psychedelic development and wellness company and operator of LeichtMind multidisciplinary clinics, has partnered with MindBio Therapeutics to launch MindBio’s microdosing trials in Canada. Edmonton’s Dr. Krista Leicht will work with the MindBio management team to “bring the skills, expertise and training programs related to assisted psychedelic therapies to the Canadian landscape.” September marks Alopecia Areata Awareness Month, and the local community has been trying to empower more people dealing with the disease to share what they are going through, reports CBC’s Radio Active. Events Oct. 1, 7am: Social Innovation in Indigenous Health Oct. 1, 12pm: Canadian Leaders in Artificial Intelligence Oct. 4, 11am: Stroke Rehabilitation Challenge Forum Oct. 5-6: Canada’s Medtech Conference 2021 Oct. 25-27: Alberta Cancer Research Conference 2021 Oct. 26, 6pm: From Lab to Bedside and Beyond: The Future of Cancer Research is Here Oct. 26-27: Canadian Computational Neuroscience Symposium Nov. 3-4: i4 2021 Virtual Conference Dec. 2-5: University Hospital Foundation’s Festival of Trees Dec. 10-11: Reimagining Public Spaces and Built Environments in the Post-pandemic World Have a suggestion for a future edition? Send it to hello@taprootedmonton.ca for consideration. Become a “Roundup Cultivator” and sponsor Taproot Edmonton to help them chronicle health innovation in Edmonton. Learn more