Mr Jonathan Oehley

Mr Jonathan Oehley obtained his BSc Eng in mechatronics in 2020. He is currently pursuing his PhD in biomedical engineering, which was upgraded from Master’s, at University of Cape Town. He is also the co-founder of HealthShot, a MedTech startup intended to expedite innovation and commercialisation of select technologies emerging from UCT MedTech.

His research addresses one of healthcare’s most urgent challenges: the growing crisis of antibiotic resistance in treating sepsis, a potentially fatal condition where the body’s response to infection damages its own tissues. With bacteria increasingly developing resistance to available antibiotics and few new antimicrobial drugs in development, medical professionals urgently need alternative treatment approaches.

Mr Oehley’s innovative work revisits ultraviolet (UV) blood irradiation—a therapy abandoned after the discovery of antibiotics decades ago—and reimagines it using modern technology. By systematically investigating how UV light inactivates bacteria, including drug-resistant strains, he has developed a patentable novel medical device that could offer hope where antibiotics fail. This is particularly relevant for South Africa, where access to advanced healthcare and the newest-generation antibiotics is often limited.

He has extended his impact beyond the laboratory by leading the organisation of UCT MedTech exhibitions at prestigious events such as the 2022 World Science Forum and the 2023 World Health Innovation Forum.