By Ravit Warsha Dor, Kamet Health Partner

Earlier this month I participated in a truly unique conference - an outdoor weekend-adventure in Iceland - with a bunch of fellow health-tech and life-science peers from across the world where we talked about the future of health. I thought it was a great way to make lasting connections amongst a group of like minded people, and I’d like to share the highlights with you and thank @David Rowan’s Voyagers.io for organizing the trip!

We were close to 50 individuals from health-tech and life-sciences: startup founders, investors, researchers and advisers from the UK, US, Israel, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Australia to name a few, who all came together to discuss the latest advances in healthcare. 

We traversed mountains, some of which from within - imagine going 120 meters *into* the heart of a volcano! We floated in warm geothermal springs, we had delicious meals...

But the amazing part was that this was all done while having a lively discussion about our ventures in healthcare, our challenges and learnings. David Rowan and his team have created the best networking environment one can hope for. We had so much FUN!

A common theme emerged - challenges in healthcare are global and often common to many geographies. Since it is such a multidisciplinary domain with challenges that span endless problem domains (medical, technological, regulatory, psychological, legal and ethical) it is crucial to learn from others' failures and success stories.

Many health-tech entrepreneurs tackle problems they've experienced firsthand and are typically very passionate about their venture, but it is not enough - building a sustainable business that improves healthcare is not easy... True understanding of the problem domain, strategic guidance, funding and a strong team are a few of the crucial elements for success. A strong network is another element, which is sometimes overlooked.

It wasn’t just the conversation that had me fully immersed. Desolate Iceland and the dramatic landscape provided a unique chance to take a step back from our busy routines, open up, get to know each other and create long lasting friendships.

This is something you don't get in any conference nor in any organized trip and actually - nowhere I know of. It is a perfect way to combine business and pleasure, and an amazing opportunity to learn from others!

I feel fortunate to have found it and here’s to the first of many more! (thank you @David @Serena, @Seda, and @Kamet), now back to work. Until the next adventure ;)

Skál! (Cheers in Icelandic)

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