Listen now: Taking on the great UTI challenge— The Femtech World Podcast

The Femtech World Podcast is back and this month we’re talking UTIs with Giovanna Forte, CEO of Forte Medical, who explains how a lack of standard protocol for urine screening is leaving women at increased risk of anti-microbial resistance.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) disproportionately affect women, and vast gaps exist in terms of common protocols, diagnosis and treatments. Femtech World editor Sarah Sinclair talks to Giovanna Forte, CEO of Forte Medical, about pioneering a way beyond this global challenge and unlocking the full potential of urine screening.

UTIs are one of the leading causes of life-threatening E. coli bloodstream infections in England, with 20% of blood infections leading to sepsis are a result of untreated UTI. We discuss the link between UTIs and antimicrobial resistance and how women may be disproportionately placed at risk. NHS England says UTIs are a major contributor to the burden of antibiotic resistant infections. Despite how common they are, there’s actually no standard protocol for urine collection when it comes to testing for UTI. As a result around 30% of urine samples are unreliable, with 73% of patients presenting with UTI being treated for a non-existent infection.

Giovanna Forte is CEO of Forte Medical, a company co-founded with her brother, Dr Vincent Forte, a retired GP, forensic physician and medical author. He has developed a device which aims to tackle this issue. While he continued as a full-time GP, Giovanna led seven years of R&D on the prototype Peezy Midstream.

For sixteen years prior to Forte Medical she ran her own highly successful communications agency and now enjoys regular invitations to speak at Imperial College, Imperial Business School, various industry events and within secondary schools hoping to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.

We hope you enjoy the episode!

Find out more about the Forte Medical and the Peezy Midstream here