Hallie Sue Cho

Meet Scale-Ups Fellow, Hallie Sue Cho
Hallie received degrees in mechanical engineering and management science from MIT. She is currently working on commercializing OttoClave, an affordable and innovative sterilization system designed for resource-limited health centers. OttoClave was developed by Hallie and Greg Tao (SM’12 SB’12) during their master’s program. She has long been interested in product development, product adoption, and entrepreneurship. Working on OttoClave has been a great opportunity to use her academic and industry experiences to solve a real-world problem.

The Issue: 20 million preventable surgical infections
There are over 400,000 PHCs and sub centers in low income regions of the world, without adequate sterilization equipment, that provide care for over two billion people. Up to one in three patients receiving treatment at remote clinics become infected from unsterilized medical instruments. This causes over 20 million preventable infections the world. 

The Solution: A low cost, talking medical instrument sterilization device
OttoClave’s innovative cycle monitor talks to users in their native language, standardizes training and provides continued education. The monitor only alerts staff when their attention is necessary – allowing users to perform other tasks while the device is running. OttoClave also gives users confirmation of successful sterilization, a feature that was previously only available with high-end autoclaves. By utilizing commercial pressure cookers with built in safety measures, OttoClave limits risks associated with using unregulated, low-end pressure vessels.