Carmen Berger, Director of MEDICA and COMPAMED at Messe Düsseldorf, kicked off the event with some positive news for the community: “COMPAMED 2026 is fully booked. This shows that the MedTech industry wants to cooperate and actively shape healthcare.” She also emphasised: “COMPAMED is the true heart of the MEDICA ecosystem. The topics of intensive care and emergency medicine demonstrate the synergy between MEDICA and COMPAMED.”
Tim Merforth, Managing Director of IVAM, added with regard to the events in November: “I am personally very much looking forward to the special exhibition MEDICA HOSPITAL OF THE FUTURE. There we will be able to see how applications can be specifically integrated into hospital practice.”
Human-centred design as the key
Dr Jens Ebnet from Ebnet Medical GmbH provided the technical introduction. Drawing on his practical experience as an emergency physician, he identified key requirements for product development. His core message was: “Understanding the needs of patients and users is the key to human-centred medical technology.”
The focus was on the question of what requirements users actually place on medical devices. Ebnet formulated three guiding principles for this: supporting care, promoting communication and reducing the burden on concentration.
Greater safety in vascular Access
In a second presentation, Ebnet addressed a common clinical problem: the failure of the first puncture attempt during vascular access. Failed attempts can cause infections and injuries. Existing procedures are often resource-intensive and complex.
Ebnet Medical is therefore developing new solutions for intensive care and emergency medicine, including the “Swordcath” vascular access system, a single-handed PIVC, and a kink-resistant catheter. The products are currently still awaiting clinical approval.
With regard to the importance of international cooperation, Ebnet explained: “International cooperation is crucial for improving patient safety and saving lives.”
Biosensors for new forms of therapy
Dr Andreas Weltin from iST Jobst presented biosensor platforms capable of measuring glucose, lactate and peptides. Applications range from intensive care medicine and organ transport to cell and gene therapies.
Using CAR-T cell therapy as an example, Weltin highlighted the economic challenges of modern treatment methods: “Our goal must be to reduce the costs of these therapies to make them safer and more accessible.”
Microsensors could contribute to this by monitoring cell growth directly in the culture vessel, thereby reducing staffing and laboratory costs.
Wearables not just on the wrist
Erik Jung from Fraunhofer IZM presented textile electronics solutions for patient monitoring. His “System-on-Flex” research group is developing smart patches to record biomarkers, ECG, oxygen saturation, pulse wave analysis, respiratory rate and sweat parameters.
