Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Texas Healthcare Challenge?

• The Texas Healthcare Challenge (TXHCC) is a two-day hackathon fostering innovative solutions to healthcare problems. 
• Participants pitch problems, form teams, and use design thinking to create products, business models, and go-to-market strategies. 
• The event includes keynote talks, hacking, mentorship, presentations, judging, and prizes.       
• An opportunity that fosters innovative thinking and solutions.  

What a healthcare hackathon or prize challenge is NOT:

• It is not an investment event or automatic entry to an accelerator program.
• It is not a symposium or networking event for advertising or promotion.

Who’s invited?

This event is truly multidisciplinary, meaning any person with just about any professional background can participate. You can expect to work alongside entrepreneurs, students, doctors, engineers, software developers, scientists, graphic designers, nurses, policymakers, CIOs, corporate managers, and many others.  

Can I bring my own team?

You CAN NOT advertise an already existing company or startup. (For example- no company T-Shirts worn).  This would give an unfair advantage to those who are pitching their idea for the first time.  However, attendees may come with a team already set. If so, everyone must register separately. During the pitching session on Friday night, those who choose to do so can pitch a problem statement they’ve seen or experienced in healthcare. So, instead of pitching your company, product or service, you CAN pitch the underlying problem you are solving or a new one you are trying to solve.

Do I need to bring a team myself, or will I be placed on a team?

If you have a team already, feel free to bring the whole crew. Each member will need to register separately.  You might even split up to double your impact. 

What if I don’t have a team

Flying solo? Don’t sweat it. Most attendees will be looking to join a team and there will be opportunities to do so. On Friday night, there will be a final push to match people up on teams. We may even assign you to a team. 

What are the Tracks? How will we form into teams?

Track themes will be listed on the website. 

For the Problem Pitching – those who have a problem to pitch can sign up on Friday after they finish up with registration. They may also sign up early and be registered to win a prize. After After the opening presentations on Friday night, attendees are invited to Problem Pitch in front of the audience. Everyone watches these pitches and votes on the ones they are most interested in working on. Team leads (Those who gave the problem pitch) talk with interested participants to discuss further and form teams. Participants can form their own teams or we can help create teams. 

What are the prizes? 

• Amazon credit prizes for the winning teams and each member as well as cloud credits and other discounts or access tickets with Health Wildcatters. 
• 1st prize is usually $1000-$1500 and 3 or more teams winning "Finalist" awards of similar amounts.
• Awards also given for team with most social media posts.

When is the event?

Events are usually held each February with the possibility of a summer event in the month of August. The next event is scheduled for Feb. 2025. Stay tuned for more information! Sign up for the Health Wildcatters newsletter here to stay up to date. 

When is the application deadline?

TBD

Who owns the project my team works on? What about intellectual property? 

The team is the owner of any IP but at this early stage. Each project requires much more commercialization effort to be valuable. Don’t worry about IP at this stage.

Is there a code of conduct?  

Yes. You’ll also be asked to sign an online version prior to the event.

What if I have no ideas to bring?

No problem! Listen to others pitch their ideas and join a team.

I’ve heard this event referred to as a “hackathon”. Will I need experience in computer programming to participate?

No programming expertise needed. Teams may choose to promote a new business model and present that in their pitch. Some teams may actually code a first prototype.

Do I need to stay for the entire event?

Yes, please plan to participate both Friday and Saturday. To get the most out of the event, accepted applicants should stay until the awards are announced on Saturday night. 

When can I expect to hear back after I apply?

Within 1 to 2 weeks

Are there other ways to get involved?

Yes! We’re always looking for more sponsors, judges, mentors, and volunteers. Just apply and let us know if you’d like to be involved in those ways.

Can I bring a “Plus One”? 

No. However, please feel free to recommend them to apply.

How to pitch a problem statement?  

• Pitching is not required, but you have to join a team to compete.
• Those choosing to pitch will be instructed to submit a video description prior to the start of the hackathon. 
• Email communication following registration and acceptance will explain how this will be done.
• This is an opportunity for listeners to get excited about a healthcare idea after they’ve heard a problem pitch lasting no more than 60 seconds. Here's what you do: Start your pitch, say your name, a sentence about yourself, and then explain the problem you want to solve in healthcare. Tell a story about it. What is the problem? Who is impacted? Why is it important? Don't describe the solution yet. Just explain the problem. 

What do I do if I plan on problem pitching? 

As you are accepted to the event, you’ll receive email notifications and instructions on how to problem pitch. We will problem pitch on Friday night and after registration those who want to pitch will be given a number of their order to pitch. 

How to join a team? (Friday night)

Pitch or listen to pitches and select whatever is of interest. Once you have heard all of the pitches, get to know the team member(s) and mingle until you find a team. Don’t worry, we will help you find a team. 

What are the judging criteria?

• Innovation: Is there impressive use of cutting-edge technology? Is the hack tackling a new problem? If an existing problem, is the hack approaching it with a significant new idea / technology?
• Health Impact: How much better is this than the current standard of care? Does it contribute to patient care improvements in a clear way? How big is the potential benefit to patients if the project was developed? How much end user research have they conducted or plan to conduct?
• Business Model : How does this innovation compete with what is or might be on the market? Is there a clear revenue model? Have they identified hypotheses, assumptions, or low-cost experiments they can perform? Will an end-user pay for this or be attracted to use it?
• Presentation: Was the presentation exciting? Did the outcome of the hack surprise you? Is the storytelling visually appealing? Did they use their 3 minutes wisely? Did this team come-in with a pre-existing project?

What do the final presentations consist of?

Your team will develop a 3 minute presentation. Use of slides is recommended (Canva, PPTX, etc.) and shareable in PDF format. The outline should include:  Problem, Solution, Path Forward.  Wow the judges!

What is expected from me as a participant?

Listen to problem pitches, join a team, contribute to a viable solution worthy of pitching, meet new people, have some fun, and try to win prizes.  

At the end of the event, what should a finished project look like?

A finished project will consist of a pitch deck given by one or all of the teammates. If there is a prototype or code to assess, please be able to show this on one of your slides. A rubric will be provided on the day of the event. 

What should I bring?

We recommend you to bring a laptop, tablet, or smartphone at minimum. Sketch easel with paper and markers will be provided to each team.  Plenty of snacks, meals, and drinks will also be provided. 

What should I wear?

Business casual / casual attire is acceptable.  Be comfortable - think jeans, t-shirt, etc. 

Who will be attending? 

In addition to the attendees, others include: mentors, speakers, the Challenge leadership team, and VIPs (those involved in the Health Wildcatters network).

If I have been part of a previous hackathon, should I participate again?
Yes! All hackathons have different track themes, participants from all kinds of professional backgrounds, and offer completely different experiences.

What are the expectations for forming teams and putting a presentation together?
Teams will form naturally during and after pitching problems as participants identify the problem and pitch they would like to help find a solution for. Teams do not need a business model or presentation ready for commercialization for pitching. There will be mentors to support teams, who will assist in creating presentations and pitching materials.

A past attendee's experience on how to find your team.
It was fully virtual and people pitched into problems presented, so Teams formed easily and naturally. It is recommended that whoever pitches the problem, does not have solutions. However, it would be alright for an attendee to experience other pitches.

How many people problem pitch?
There is no set number as people who pitch don't always form a team. Some people go further than others. Market or Financial numbers sometimes play into final presentations, and rarely in initial problem pitches.

What is Health Wildcatters and how are they connected to this event? 

Health Wildcatters was founded in 2013 to address the need for a health innovation hub in the burgeoning Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex healthcare industry. Since its inception the Health Wildcatters portfolio has grown to 100+ startups and has raised over $250 million solidifying Health Wildcatters as one of the top healthcare accelerators in the country. Health Wildcatters created an event space which allows the organization to hold 60-70 events annually spanning the Pulse Breakfast and Lunch Series, the Health Track for Startup Week Dallas, and now the Texas Healthcare Challenge.