CROSS-SECTORAL ALLIANCE AS THE KEY FOR INNOVATION-DRIVEN BUSINESS SUCCESS OF ESTONIAN AND GREEK REPRODUCTIVE HEALTHCARE

Constantly decreasing infertility rates and low success rates of in vitro fertilization (IVF) associated with the advanced age of couples create challenges in reproductive medicine. It is crucial to fill the existing gaps to unlock the socioeconomic benefits and boost the commercial viability of reproductive medicine in Europe. The gap in access to excellence is especially witnessed in Widening countries such as Greece and Estonia, where the academic sector is lagging behind, producing a low volume of commercialised innovations and low-quality clinical services. It poses obstacles in creating competitive positions for highly talented specialists with career perspectives and a strong interest in boosting local reproductive medicine, stimulating the brain drain, and minimizing life-long learning opportunities. The contribution of the NESTOR project to solving these challenges is aimed at improving the research and innovation performance of institutions involved in reproductive medicine by boosting the collaboration between industry and academia in Widening and non-Widening countries through cross-sectoral and international mobilities. The NESTOR consortium consists of 8 partners from academic and industry partners from the Netherlands, Greece, and Estonia, ensuring the knowledge transfer and advancement in four key reproductive medicine modalities for the reproductively aged population: personalised medicine solutions, IVF embryo and uterine health studies, and novel non-invasive prenatal testing technologies.In total, NESTOR will engage 23 ERA Talents from the Widening Countries, boosting their research skills, nurturing their innovative and entrepreneurial mindset, and providing them with other transferable skills. The well-tailored secondment methodology is aimed at raising their research profiles, improving their career perspectives and opportunities for life-long learning, which will help reverse the brain drain in the long term.