A new medical tech hackathon, Jugaad-a-thon, has promised to help some of India’s poorest people by coming up with innovative new ways to deliver solutions to improve healthcare in the country. India has a high infant mortality rate and 17% of mothers die during childbirth, for instance.

250 engineers, developers and entrepreneurs aimed to changed this at the 2014 Jugaad-a-thon on the 19th and 20th of July.. Prizes were on offer for the most innovative solutions.

The technologies shown off include an app to help mother’s diagnose development delays, a leprosy predictor and a spray which can be applied to a bone fracture to harden the area before receiving treatment. The cost effective ways of delivering these new technologies puts them within reach of India’s poorest communities, helping to improve the quality of life for thousands of people.

The low budget approach to development could be used in other areas, such as medical training or analysis, offering an affordable way to try new ideas without breaking the bank.