What with so many new regulations and payment reforms driving investment in healthcare innovations, it’s not always easy for entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to find each other. Yet, huge market opportunities are opening up in health IT — and perhaps nowhere more so than in mobile technologies.

Looking to bridge that gap, venture investors will discuss trends in healthcare funding and strategies to attract investors and partners during the session, “mHealth Venture Trends: What investors are funding and why?” on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 2:30 p.m., at the HIMSS Media mHealth Summit 2013 taking place in the Washington, DC area.

Consumers will drive what mobile tools, apps and content are the next must-haves rather than what was already seen in the non-mobile world over the last 15 years — investors driving what consumers get to use, according to Amy Millman, president, Washington, DC-based Springboard Enterprises, one of the session presenters.

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“Investors will wait to hear what consumers have to say before investing, and consumers are ready to be angel investors with the promise that the mobile solution will fix or at least address what ails us,” Milliman said. “Crowdfunding will be the way to get into the market in a hurry and attract both consumer traction and investor interest."

Also participating in the venture trends session are Stephen Block, general partner of Canaan Partners; Bryan Bushick, founder and principal, Falcon Health Solutions LLC; and, Amy Puliafito, Rock Health marketing and media.

And from the entrepreneur perspective, new forms of investment are changing the way entrepreneurs are raising funds and collaborating to build their business. A panel of startups will share strategies for launching new ventures in the session, “The New Startup Landscape: Finding investment and building your business,” on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 3:45 p.m.

That discussion will include a look at how startups should focus “on the critical areas that create equity value, such as building a billion dollar board, packaging your company and developing a roadmap to scale,” said Unity Stoakes, co-founder and president of StartUp Health.

Entrepreneurs can also get noticed by key stakeholders with customer development, understanding your "why statement” and focusing on great design, Stoakes added. Because of the current unique conditions, this may be the best time to invest in and build a health technology startup.

The other session participants are Jeffrey Borenstein, chief marketing officer at MedStartr, and Matthew Holt, co-chairman of Health 2.0.

The mHealth Summit runs Dec. 8-11 at the Gaylord Resort in National Harbor, MD.